A disturbing incident occurred in a Brazilian bank as a woman reportedly entered with a deceased person.
The body belonged to an elderly man whom the woman, identified as Erika de Souza Vieira Nunes, allegedly tried to persuade to co-sign a loan.
Nunes was captured on video beside the wheelchair in which the deceased person sat, seemingly supporting his drooping head.
The footage aired by Brazilian broadcaster TV Globo showed Nunes conversing with the deceased, referring to him as her ‘uncle’, and requesting him to sign financial documents for a loan of $3,400, approximately 17,000 Brazilian Reais.
She could be heard urging him to sign, stating, “Uncle, are you listening? You need to sign [the loan contract]. If you don’t sign, there’s no way, because I can’t sign for you.”
She added, “Sign so you don’t give me any more headaches, I can’t take it anymore.”
When questioned by staff, she reportedly explained the man’s lack of response, claiming, “He is like that. He doesn’t say anything. Uncle, do you want to go to the [hospital] again?”
The man was identified as 68-year-old Paulo Roberto Braga.
Horrified bank staff called the police, who arrested Nunes.
An investigation has been initiated to determine the nature of the loan and to identify other family members of Braga.
It was later discovered that Braga had been dead for several hours before the incident.
Police Chief Fábio Luiz stated, “She tried to pretend to get him to sign the loan. He already entered the bank dead. The main thing is to continue the investigation to identify other family members, and find out more about this loan.”
However, Nunes’ attorney, Ana Carla de Souza Correa, contested the narrative, claiming that Braga was alive at the time and that testimonies exist to support this.
Nunes may potentially face charges of fraud, embezzlement, and abuse of a corpse.