Citizen accuses National Police of abuse of authority in Porto da Furna, commander rejects accusations

As reported by Notícias de Djabraba, a citizen on the island of Brava accused the National Police of allegedly abusing their authority during an operation to search a vehicle in Porto da Furna, accusations that were rejected by the local command of the police force.

In statements to Inforpress, resident António Varela said that a car sent from the city of Praia arrived in Brava on May 4, and that he was responsible for receiving the vehicle at the port.

According to the complainant, when he arrived at the Port of Furna he found the vehicle already off the ship and National Police officers searching inside the car without his presence, a situation he considered illegal.

"I arrived at the Port of Furna and found the officers with the door of the vehicle open. I asked them what was going on and they said they were carrying out a search," he said.

António Varela also explained that the officers didn't find any illegal material, but they did check the documents kept in the glove compartment and found that the vehicle had not been inspected and had overdue road tax.

According to him, the car had recently been purchased in the city of Praia by an owner living in the United States of America, and had subsequently been sent to the island of Brava to be kept in a garage until the owner arrived in the country.

The citizen also said that he was taken to the police station, where he was fined 10,000 escudos. António Varela questioned the legality of the fine, claiming that the vehicle was not circulating on a public road at the time of the police intervention, but was parked in an area of Enapor waiting to be picked up.

Contacted by Inforpress, the commander of the police station on the island of Brava, Deputy Commissioner Aldino Silva, refuted the accusations of abuse of authority and denied that the search had taken place without the presence of the person responsible for the vehicle.

According to the commander, all the procedures were carried out in the presence of the complainant and the National Police has proof of the actions of the agents involved in the operation.

With regard to the fine imposed, Aldino Silva said that the measure was legal and justified the fact that the vehicle had been without a mandatory inspection and without updated road tax since November 2025.

The police officer also added that the car does not belong to António Varela and informed him that the owner has already paid the fine.