The São Paulo Civil Police opened an investigation into a possible abandonment of the incompetent Margarida Bonetti, whose story is told on the podcast A Mulher da Casa Abandonada sheet. The case opened earlier this month after the series had already aired.
The police investigation began after neighbors of the property where she lives, in Higienópolis (downtown São Paulo), called several police stations and said that a person with mental health problems was there and needed help.
Bonetti is suspected of having kept a maid in conditions equivalent to US slavery for almost 20 years. In the late 1990s, when the American police were investigating the case, she left the country and settled in her family’s home in Higienópolis, where she still lives today.
The latest episode of the podcast reveals that she and other heirs are currently fighting over the property in court.
MP Roberto Monteiro of the 1st Centro Seccional Precinct said that one of Bonetti’s sisters had already been interviewed by the police. In the statement, she said the house was shot at.
The delegate said the police have not yet been able to enter the property, but as soon as they do they will request an opinion from the Institute of Forensic Science to confirm whether the apartment was really shot.
According to the investigation, police officers have already gone to the address and found that the house “is in a state of abandonment, with huge vegetation covering the entrance to the property, which was closed.”
According to investigators, it was noticed that lights were on in the house, but no one responded to the police.
Neighbors and family acquaintances were also questioned, Bonetti himself has not yet testified.
Six episodes of the podcast are available on major audio platforms such as Spotify, Apple Podcasts and Deezer. A new episode airs every Wednesday at 7 a.m. through July 20.
The podcast is presented and written by Chico Felitti, author of the book “Ricardo & Vânia”, which tells the life story of a street artist named Fofão da Augusta and was a finalist for the Jabuti Award 2020. Felitti also created and presents Além do Meme, an audio documentary series exclusively for Spotify voted Podcast of the Year 2020 by the Splash UOL Awards.
The series includes actress and playwright Renata Carvalho, who interprets the interviews in English and Portuguese, and Magê Flores, who presents Café da Manhã, Folha’s daily podcast, and also coordinates the production of A Mulher da Casa Abandonada. The audio of the podcast is by Luan Alencar, production by Beatriz Trevisan and Otávio Bonfá.
The podcast is a report based on footage of a case of notorious public interest, seeking to hear everyone involved and giving space to versions of those who spoke. The series is neither a police investigation nor a court case. THE sheet condemns any kind of aggression and persecution against the people depicted.