Rio de Janeiro councilor Monica Benício, widow of Marielle Franco, was the third witness to speak at the trial of those accused of the death of the former councilor and driver Anderson Gomes, this Wednesday (30). Her speech lasted just over 30 minutes.
Monica appeared to be the most emotional of the prosecution witnesses heard so far and had difficulty starting her speech.
The widow testified after Marielle’s mother, who shared with those present some of her pain after her daughter’s murder.
The session began late in the morning with the testimony of Fernanda Chaves, the victim’s former advisor.
The architect and councilor began her speech by remembering her wife’s personality. “Marielle was the friend you could call in the early hours of the morning. He was a very explosive person, with a lot of energy. But at the same time, very affectionate. Everything for her became a big event”, he said.
In her statement, the widow highlighted that “Marielle was at the happiest moment of her life, as she herself recognized.”
Shortly after that, Monica took a break from her testimony, as she was quite emotional.
The widow reported that she met Marielle when she was 18 years old and that they had a long relationship, on and off. The former councilor played a fundamental role in Monica’s education: “I went to pre-university exams because Marielle encouraged me. When I passed the entrance exam, she went to enroll with me. When I passed my master’s degree, she went to enroll with me. I left a good job at an architecture firm because I wanted to do a master’s degree and Marielle encouraged me.”
Monica also reiterated how much she misses her partner and asked for justice: “the only possible justice would be for me not to be here and for Marielle and Anderson to be alive. But, beyond that, as far as possible, I hope that the justice that Brazil, which the world has been waiting for for 6 years and 7 months, will be done.”
According to Monica, his wife never reported her fear of being attacked. “Marielle, in general, was a person who got along well with everyone she interacted with”, he pointed out.
This content was originally published in Widow cries when talking about Marielle in jury: “she was in the happiest moment of her life” on the CNN Brasil website.
Source: CNN Brasil
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