Gustavo Metropolo former student of the Getulio Vargas Foundation (FGV), was convicted in criminal and civil proceedings for the crime of racism committed in a WhatsApp group against a black colleague at the university, in 2018.
On the occasion, the young black man João Gilberto Lima, a public administration student at the Getúlio Vargas Foundation (FGV), in São Paulo, was photographed in the college environment and had the image shared in a student messaging group .
The photo was shared along with the words: “I found this slave here in the smoking area! Whoever owns it, let me know!” In the episode, the racist comment came from Gustavo Metropolo, also a student at the university .
After the incident, João Gilberto turned to the Center for Studies on Labor Relations and Inequalities (Ceert), with the assistance of lawyer Daniel Bento Teixeira, to represent him in a lawsuit filed against Metropolo for the crime of racism.
With the repercussion of the case and the progress of the process, Metropolo allegedly claimed at the time that his cell phone was stolen and that, therefore, he could not be the author of the racist comment.
Later, through evidence presented by the victim’s defense, it was proven that the student was in fact the author of the post and the comment, according to Ceert.
In a statement, FGV stated that “at the time, FGV-EAESP opened the appropriate internal disciplinary procedures, but Mr. Gustavo Metropolo left the school immediately after the incident and has not returned since then.”
The educational institution also said that the procedure aims to investigate the facts and apply the appropriate measure, which could include expulsion.
“If white people and structures were not counting on our presence, now they are not only forced to deal with it, but they are also forced to respond criminally for the racism they have freely carried for so long,” stated the Coletivo Negro 20 de Novembro FGV, three years after the case.
Understand the process
In the criminal proceedings, Metropolo was sentenced in the first instance to two years and four months in prison, in addition to twenty-three (23) days of fines.
However, the sentence was replaced by two restrictive sentences of rights to provide services to the community and a monetary penalty of 5 minimum wages in favor of the victim (without prejudice to compensation in civil court), for the crimes of racism and racial injury.
Subsequently, in the second instance, the Court of Justice of São Paulo partially reformed the decision, reestablishing the sentence at two years’ imprisonment and ten days’ fine, in the amount of half the minimum wage for each day’s fine.
The replacement of the custodial sentence with two restrictive penalties of the right to provide services to the community and a pecuniary penalty of 5 minimum wages in favor of the victim (without prejudice to compensation in civil court) was then maintained.
In the Civil Court, Gustavo was also sentenced in the first instance to pay compensation for moral damages in the amount of R$30,000.00 and material damages in the amount of R$13,980.00, amounts spent by João Gilberto on medical and psychological assistance.
CEERT’s lawyers appealed for an increase in the amount and the appeal was partially granted and increased to R$50,000.00 for moral damages.
Gustavo has now also been sentenced on an administrative level. According to the Secretariat of Justice and Citizenship (SJC), the former FGV student was penalized in the first instance, on an administrative level, with a fine of R$100,000 for the crime.
“When we add up the amounts of compensation and financial sanctions, we arrive at a total sentence of R$120,977.34,” stated the Center for Studies on Labor Relations and Inequalities (Ceert).
The body, through the Special Commission on Racial Discrimination, is responsible for investigating and penalizing discriminatory acts in accordance with São Paulo state law 14,187/2010, which provides for administrative penalties for any individual or legal entity that commits acts of racial discrimination.
Metropolo’s defense filed an appeal against the conviction, which is currently under analysis, under judicial secrecy.
THE CNN tries to contact the victim, João Gilberto Lima, and Gustavo Metropolo’s Defense.
When contacted, the Court of Justice of São Paulo has not yet responded to the case with information about the conviction.
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This content was originally published in Former FGV student is sentenced after 6 years for racial crime against colleague in SP on the CNN Brasil website.
Source: CNN Brasil
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