[animal and insect sounds]
[dog sniffing]
[mysterious music playing]
-[man] Bruno called today? -[woman 1] No.
[man] What if he does?
[woman 1] I won't answer. If he calls me, I'll call the police.
[woman 2] He threatened her several times.
Everyone warned her to be afraid of him, to be careful.
Sometimes he would hit her, and she said, "He does it because he loves me."
[woman 1] He threatened me on the phone.
He told me he would beat me up, that he would have me killed.
He said, "You don't know what I'm capable of."
[mysterious music continues]
[woman 3] She was chasing after her dreams.
She was... a dreamer.
[woman 4] And her dream was to be a goalkeeper.
She thought she was gonna be a professional goalkeeper.
She wanted it.
-[dramatic music playing] -[people shouting]
[woman 5] Eliza was a big dreamer. She dreamed of leaving the country,
of becoming... someone.
[siren blaring]
[reporter] Police are investigating the disappearance of 25-year-old
Eliza Samudio,
ex-girlfriend of Bruno, the goalkeeper for Flamengo.
Bruno was the captain of Flamengo. The team was famous.
They won every game.
Everyone loved him.
Imagine this goalkeeper being accused of a crime.
I pray for her to show up and bring an end to this situation.
Because it's gone on long enough, and it makes me upset.
[woman 6] I think he thought that he was king of the world.
Eliza... She really believed
and trusted... in Bruno.
[woman 7] Eliza did everything right. She sought justice.
She asked everyone for help.
But Eliza was not heard.
[woman 8] "Fear" was a word that didn't exist in her vocabulary.
[woman 7] She fell for the wrong man.
He said, "If you go to the police or anywhere else,
I'll come after you. I'll kill you."
"I'll kill your family and friends because I know where they all live."
"I know every single one of them."
[man] Where's the body? There isn't one. Obituary? None.
Coroner's report? None. She must be alive.
We have a big offer, so attention, Brazil.
One million reais
to the person that is able to bring back here,
Eliza Samudio, alive.
[woman 8] Where's Eliza?
That is the question that millions of people
would like to know the answer to.
AN INVISIBLE VICTIM: THE ELIZA SAMUDIO CASE
[dramatic music fades]
[crowd cheering]
MARACANÃ STADIUM
[melodic drum music playing]
[commentator] And Flamengo are officially national champions!
Six time champions of Brazil!
[man] Bruno was an exceptional athlete.
Tall, strong, agile...
BRUNO'S FORMER COACH
...with an excellent ability to react quickly. An incredible talent.
He was born to be a goalie.
[commentator] Bruno makes an absolutely sensational save
at Maracanã Stadium.
[man] At the time...
BRUNO'S DEFENSE LAWYER
...the Flamengo team was known as the Empire of Love.
Vágner Love, Adriano Imperador...
The Flamengo supporters feel very nostalgic for that team.
And you had Bruno as goalkeeper, so the team was unbeatable.
[commentator] And Flamengo are the champions of Rio!
And he is the greatest champion of all time!
Bruno would catch 600 shots per day.
SPORTS JOURNALIST - EXTRA
He needed a trainer and three assistants to help him.
And we thought, "How does this guy do it?"
[contemplative music playing]
AUGUST 2009
[woman] We reached out to Bruno for a special edition
of "Have Lunch With Your Idol."
JOURNALIST - EXTRA
It was a column in a magazine for the Extra newspaper.
It came out on Sundays.
The column was a way for people to get to know celebrities.
They wanted Bruno.
On that day, Bruno brought Ingrid with him.
He took pictures with her and showed everyone his fiancée at the time.
BRUNO'S FIANCÉE
They were together for almost a year.
GOALKEEPER SUPERSTAR
And Bruno's relationship with Eliza was happening at the same time.
The problem was that Eliza didn't know about Bruno's relationship.
She didn't know Bruno was engaged.
And from that article,
in which Bruno lunches with his fans and Ingrid,
perhaps that was the starting point for this whole story.
24 YEARS OLD
[Eliza] He was treating me really well,
but then I saw an article in the newspaper about him
that said he had a new girlfriend.
That's when I got mad and decided to come out
and tell the press that I was pregnant.
[contemplative music playing]
We met at a barbecue here in Rio
through my friend and some mutual acquaintances we had here.
And then we got together.
[journalist] Tell us more about it. What was it like?
Earlier you said that he approached you.
Was that it? Were you alone? What happened?
Yeah, I arrived at the party, he was there, shirtless, by the way.
He has an attractive physique.
But I didn't speak to him.
I told my friend that I thought he had a good body.
He was handsome.
I remember my friend said he wanted to meet me, but I didn't do anything.
But both of us were interested, so we got involved.
I began to feel sick from drinking, so I took a test.
Right after, I told Bruno, and he asked me what I wanted to do.
I told him I was gonna keep the baby. We continued seeing each other.
Until 15 days ago everything was fine. It was wonderful.
Then out of the blue he lost his mind.
[journalist] So what's happening? He's not answering your calls?
I call him and he won't answer, or he tells me to fuck off.
I just don't know what to do.
[contemplative music fades]
THIS WOMAN IS CRAZY. I'M NOT THE BABY'S FATHER - BRUNO FLAMENGO GOALKEEPER
He came out and said he wasn't the father.
In fact, he denied having a relationship with her.
He had a committed relationship with Ingrid,
but he wouldn't admit to having a relationship with Eliza Samudio.
[contemplative music playing]
And a year after that article came out, Eliza disappeared.
AUGUST 2009
JUNE 2010
[reporter] The investigation into the disappearance of student Eliza Samudio,
who had a relationship with Flamengo's goalkeeper Bruno,
continues to gain new information.
This Tuesday, the police resumed their search
on the player's ranch in Esmeraldas,
in the metropolitan region of the Capital.
This all started to come to light on Thursday of last week.
LEAD DETECTIVE
We received information that Bruno,
the goalkeeper of the Flamengo soccer team,
had violently assaulted Eliza
at his private ranch.
We were informed of the fact that she was missing
and that the baby, their son, was with the ranch's staff.
PRESIDING JUDGE
[Marixa] I was contacted by two police chiefs at the time,
informing me that they were investigating the disappearance of a child.
And also the disappearance of the child's mother.
And... the request was for a search and seizure
to be carried out at the ranch.
I looked at the request.
I saw that it was well-founded,
and I granted them the search and seizure.
BEGINNING OF INVESTIGATION 2 WEEKS AFTER ELIZA'S DISAPPEARANCE
And so, the saga of this case began.
[intriguing music playing]
POLICE
A police officer found a suitcase that had been completely burnt,
and in that suitcase were many items of note.
They found a baby's belongings,
such as diapers and clothes,
and also items that would belong to a woman.
[camera clicks]
After that discovery,
a full-fledged investigation was launched,
because at the same time, in Rio de Janeiro,
there was also news from Eliza's friends that she had gone missing.
[intriguing music fades]
[reporter] Eliza's father believes that many people connected to the goalkeeper
have important information and can contribute to the investigation.
DATENA SPEAKS LIVE WITH ELIZA SAMUDIO'S FATHER
I ask them, with all my heart as a father to come out of their hiding
and denounce it.
So that this doesn't happen again to anyone else's daughter.
When she vanished...
ELIZA'S FATHER
...a friend of hers
got in touch with me... right away.
[tense music plays and fades]
She called me and she told me,
"Eliza is going down a path
that we all warned her not to go down."
"And her life is in danger."
THIS DOCUMENTARY'S PRODUCTION TEAM HAD ACCESS TO ELIZA SAMUDIO'S PERSONAL LAPTOP
WHICH WAS SEIZED BY THE POLICE IN 2010.
CONVERSATIONS AND TEXT MESSAGES
THAT HAD NEVER BEEN RELEASED TO THE PUBLIC BEFORE WERE FOUND.
[intriguing music playing]
LOVEANDHATE
HE WAS ALWAYS WORRIED ABOUT ME
WE USED TO GO OUT TO DINNER ALL THE TIME, HE USED TO SPOON-FEED ME.
HE NEVER LET ME DRINK ALCOHOL
BECAUSE HE SAID IT WAS BAD FOR THE BABY
HE KEEPS SAYING I WANT FAME, MONEY!
I NEVER WANTED TO GET PREGNANT BECAUSE OF THAT
[intriguing music fades]
[journalist] Tell us a bit about your connection with soccer.
You used to play too? What is that story?
I've played indoor soccer for ten years.
I used to be a goalkeeper.
[upbeat music playing]
[people chattering]
[woman] When I met Eliza, we played on our local soccer team.
She was the goalie, wearing number one. I was number ten, the scorer.
ELIZA'S CHILDHOOD FRIEND
[people shouting]
She was a really excellent goalkeeper.
She had all the skills needed to play abroad.
And she was incredibly passionate.
Eliza was a goalie. She was good.
ELIZA'S MOTHER
A tomboy. With the large shorts, a big T-shirt, and a ball in her arms.
She'd tie up her hair and go play soccer in the middle of the street.
[Carla] Her defending was fearless.
Eliza would come out to defend with her arms open,
there was no fear of getting hurt.
An incredible goalie.
[upbeat music fades]
[contemplative music playing]
[distant people chattering]
[woman 1] Eliza was very young when we first met.
She lived in the same favela as me.
ELIZA'S CHILDHOOD FRIEND
She lived with her father and grandmother, who was her father's mother.
Beautiful,
spontaneous.
She had so much joy and such a beautiful smile.
Considering where she came from and everything she went through,
no one could take that joy away.
[distant people chattering]
[dog barking]
[woman 2] Eliza was named after my great-grandmother, Eliza Samudio.
ELIZA'S AUNT
And here is Luis Carlos Samudio, my brother, Eliza's dad.
Eliza lived with us.
We went to school together.
We used to fool around together.
We both liked to go to the river, to play in the water.
When Sonia got pregnant...
she prayed for Eliza.
We didn't have a serious commitment.
But we did have an agreement.
And I told her,
"If you become tired of it and want to leave,
you can go away and leave the girl with me."
And she did.
She just... gave her to me
and left.
[contemplative music continues]
I ran away.
[sniffles]
And I remember the time when
I went to get Eliza.
I was going to bring her home. To live with me.
He said, "Come get your daughter. I'll give her to you."
[sniffles]
"But you won't take her with you alive."
-[music becomes quiet and dramatic] -[sniffling]
I preferred she stayed. [sniffling]
[contemplative music playing]
[woman 3] As soon as I saw Eliza, I liked her immediately.
At first glance, you know?
When Luis and I met, I was 22 years old.
ELIZA'S FIRST STEPMOTHER
He told me that he had a daughter.
At the time, I think she was about two years old, or so.
She was still a baby, you know?
He brought Eliza with him to my house.
I had Suelen too. She was almost the same age as Eliza.
We decided to raise them together.
[contemplative music continues]
[children chattering]
Luis was a very handsome man.
In fact, he was the most handsome man I had ever met.
He attracted a lot of attention. I don't know how, but he did.
Later on I learned from a neighbor of mine,
that she was pregnant with his child.
We fought, split up, I passed out.
He took me to the hospital, and we found out I was also pregnant.
I was around 40 days pregnant when that happened,
and she was two months.
[contemplative music continues]
[children shouting]
[woman 4] When I met Bruno, I was a little girl.
We lived in the same neighborhood.
BRUNO'S EX-WIFE
We were still dating in this picture.
It was the beginning of the relationship.
Bruno was my first boyfriend, and my first husband.
He was a player at the time when we started dating.
But it was nothing. It was the beginning of his career, the start of a dream.
I'M THE BEST
We were humble.
We lived in the favela.
Both of us grew up very poor.
DANCE WITH ME?
Bruno's father, he'd already been in prison
for committing robberies.
And eventually, he ended up being killed during a robbery.
He tried to steal from a police officer.
He was shot three times.
No one around believed in us.
So we fought very hard.
By watching interviews of Bruno,
I realized how similar the two of them were.
They were both goalkeepers, and they came from families
that were a bit tumultuous.
And he accomplished his dream.
So I ask myself, "What if Eliza were a man?"
[contemplative music fades]
[Luciane] Eliza didn't exactly have what you would call a good childhood either.
She went through the same hardships as I did.
Lack of love, lack of tenderness.
That made people run away from home,
like I did, like Eliza did.
Eliza was a big dreamer. She dreamed of leaving the country,
of becoming... someone.
[contemplative music playing]
[Dulci] One day, I think it was about 8 p.m. when she came home.
She said, "Aunt Dulce, I came here to say goodbye."
"I don't know when I'll be back, but when I do, I'll be rich."
She said she was going to make a lot of money playing soccer.
[upbeat music playing]
[Luis] She had something special that radiated from her.
[music stops]
I always said she was an infant.
Someone different, special.
Sometimes, this kind of beauty brings you a lot of good things,
but sometimes, negative things.
[gentle, dramatic music playing]
[distant siren blaring]
[woman 1] She came to São Paulo,
but she didn't exactly find everything that she'd imagined.
An extremely competitive market.
ELIZA'S MOTHER'S LAWYER
She had no contacts, no experience, it was hard to break in.
In that moment,
she came into contact with people from the adult entertainment industry.
[contemplative music playing]
FRIEND: WHY DID YOU MAKE THOSE TWO PORN VIDEOS?
WHY DID YOU MAKE THEM?
I NEEDED THE MONEY
SEND
FRIEND: I SEE
BUT I DEEPLY REGRET IT...
PEOPLE GROW FROM THEIR MISTAKES
[woman 2] When she left Foz do Iguaçu, she went to São Paulo after a dream.
She made many friends there.
ELIZA'S SECOND STEPMOTHER
They influenced her quite a lot.
She received offers from men, because she was a very beautiful woman.
[quiet, dramatic music playing]
Why did she accept them?
Because she was distant and alone in São Paulo,
and she didn't get the help that she needed.
She did some things that make people call her a prostitute or an escort,
but she wasn't.
[Monica] Her time there was very short.
She quickly realized that it wasn't for her.
So she left the job
and made the move to Rio de Janeiro.
[lively music playing]
Eliza and Bruno met at a party, through a mutual friend.
-[lively music stops] -A friend who played soccer.
They met, there was an attraction.
Eliza thought he was very handsome.
Right? All of the enchantment that comes with being a young person.
He had the aura of a famous soccer player. So all that played a factor.
Unfortunately, she fell for the wrong man.
Later I found out she got pregnant.
[contemplative music playing]
It wasn't until after he got her pregnant...
that the real suffering began.
[intriguing music playing]
MY SON DIDN'T ASK TO BE BORN.
HE'S THE ONLY ONE PERSON WHO WILL TRULY LOVE ME
AND DESERVES MY AFFECTION.
NIGHTCLUBS, NIGHTLIFE, SOCCER PLAYERS, NOTHING MATTERED.
[Monica] Bruno was at his peak.
He had an invitation to play for Milan,
and the possibility to play for the Brazilian national team,
so he didn't want Eliza to get in his way.
How could she dare to confront
Bruno, goalkeeper of the nation of Brazil?
[lively drum music playing]
BRUNO #1 IN FREE-KICK SAVES
HE'S GOT GAME
ONCE A FLAMENGO, 31 TIMES A FLAMENGO
BRUNO SAVES 3 PENALTIES AND GOES DOWN IN HISTORY
BRUNO, AGAIN!
This title is for my family who suffered all year long.
This award, right here, this is all for them.
No one can take this title away.
They can take the rest away, my money, my car.
They can take everything, but they can't take this title.
[crowd cheering]
DECEMBER 2009
["Wedding March" playing]
MAY 2004
[Dayanne] At the beginning of our relationship,
he was so wonderful.
Caring,
gentle...
[priest] As you embark on your journey of marriage,
do you promise fidelity to each other
for as long as you both shall live?
I do.
In that moment, we all think it's gonna last eternally, "forever and ever."
[no audible dialogue]
[slow pop music playing]
When I married Bruno,
I didn't think he was a man who would let success go to his head.
And so, from the moment he started to get even just a little bit of fame,
more women came along,
he began cheating on me more...
-When we moved to Rio... -[contemplative music playing]
...the cheating became even more obvious.
I think I counted
something like seven lovers at the same time.
I found out that he got engaged
at the ranch, the ranch we had together,
while he was still married to me.
The ranch was a place we would go to as a family.
And he proposed to someone else there.
Probably slept in my bed
amongst my things.
He became incredibly dazzled by all the attention.
Even more so after he started playing for Flamengo.
I think he thought that he was
king of the world.
[contemplative music continues]
[Caio] Bruno has more than one relationship at a time.
He was married to Dayanne, engaged to Ingrid, boyfriend of Fernanda,
had an affair with Eliza.
And there were many others.
Bruno's life was unreal.
A life full of parties, wild orgies, living to excess all the time.
Because for a soccer player the goal isn't everything.
Scoring goals isn't enough.
There's the desire, this incessant need for masculine self-affirmation.
You have to drink till you pass out.
You have to fuck till you can't.
You have to participate in this cycle that's incredibly toxic.
And if not, you can't be a part of it.
You can't keep playing with us.
If there's a place with endless toxic masculinity,
look no further than on a soccer team.
[reporter 1] Bruno, and a number of other athletes,
have reportedly been involved in a fight with sex workers at a party.
It all happened on this ranch, owned by Bruno,
the goalkeeper of Flamengo.
What exactly happened to you?
[woman] A friend of mine was alone with Bruno in his bedroom when I went in.
When I entered, he began to take off all his clothes.
And I asked, "Do you have a condom?"
He said no. So I denied him.
Then he pulled my hair, called me a whore.
He tried to attack me, and Andrea intervened.
[reporter 2] And on the eve of International Women's Day,
talking about an argument between Adriano and his wife,
Bruno said this to the press...
Which one of you here, that's married,
has never thrown hands at a woman?
Never had a fight, or even had an argument with your wife?
Now Bruno, who already had the situation with Eliza,
is talking this way to the press about a woman
on International Women's Day.
We showed what was happening
so that we could bring to light who Bruno really was off the field.
"WHO HAS NEVER LAID HANDS ON A WOMAN?"
Eliza...
at the time, wasn't being taken seriously
for a very specific reason.
They were trying to spin Eliza's story
into the whore who wanted to get pregnant,
and have a child with a soccer player to guarantee alimony.
[journalist] What do you think of the term "Maria Chuteira"?
Do you feel a certain way about women that only date soccer players?
Depends. If the woman is seeking them out, then I agree with the term,
but what if it's the player?
I think Bruno was angry at Eliza,
not just because she was pregnant, but because she also made it public.
Because he was exposed. Bruno was seen as a joke.
He became a fool who was tricked into having a baby with a gold-digger,
because that's how Eliza was perceived by the public.
And that was unacceptable.
BRUNO'S SLUMP HAS AN EXPLANATION: HER
FLAMENGO'S GOALKEEPER LOSES HIS COOL: "THIS WOMAN IS CRAZY"
In soccer we have an expression.
Some players are like old grenades.
Right?
You know they're going to explode, sooner or later.
You just don't know the time or place.
The only difference is that Bruno's grenade exploded.
That's it.
ELIZA'S FRIEND ANONYMOUS TIP
[woman] Everyone warned her to be afraid of him, to be careful.
Sometimes he would hit her, and she said, "He does it because he loves me."
"He's crazy, but he loves me."
He threatened her several times.
She told us that he would call her in the middle of the night.
[journalist] What happened?
First, he called me around two o'clock in the morning.
OCTOBER 2009
No, 1:48 in the morning
he sent me a message from another number.
I said, "Who's this?" He said, "Hey, baby!"
I didn't recognize him.
I told him he was drunk, but he kept saying, "Can we talk?"
I said, "It's hard talking to you right now because you're crazy."
"I don't know what you're capable of."
I wouldn't meet him, but I was sure he would come to my house
and do something worse.
[journalist] Like what?
He came to my house and started beating me up
and said, "Why didn't you show up?"
"You talked to the newspapers and told them that you were hooking up with me."
Then he slapped me in the face.
-[tense music plays] -He took me to his apartment,
gave me tons of sleeping pills,
and forced me to drink this disgusting liquid I'd never seen.
I drank it and slept so long that I woke up at 2:00 p.m.
When I woke up he said, "Next Friday you'll have an abortion."
I agreed.
He said, "If you go to the police or anywhere else,
I'll come after you. I'll kill you."
"I'll kill your family and friends because I know where they all live."
"I know every single one of them."
-[journalist] Anyone have a gun? -Yes.
Bruno was the one who put the gun up against my head.
And at that point he said, "I'm worse than you think."
"I'm cold and calculating."
"I'll wait for the dust to settle and I'll go after you."
"You won't have this baby because I don't want it."
[tense music playing]
PREGNANT WOMAN FILES KIDNAPPING COMPLAINT AGAINST FLAMENGO'S GOALKEEPER
BRUNO ACCUSED OF ASSAULT, KIDNAPPING, FALSE IMPRISONMENT, AND THREATS
Eliza was a threat to him. Right?
Eliza had a strong personality.
So Eliza went to the media.
She caused a scene, because she was ready to fight for her son's rights.
She was ready, and it really bothered the people that were in Bruno's circle.
It created a terror within his inner posse.
[journalist] What're you going to do after filing charges against him?
I don't know, I just want him arrested.
The video of Eliza Samudio outside the police station,
was so important,
because Bruno was hoping to be called up to the Brazilian national team.
He was a goalkeeper who was on the rise.
Imagine this goalkeeper being accused of a crime.
[contemplative music playing]
ELIZA SAMUDIO SAYS SHE QUIT SOCCER BECAUSE THERE'S NO FUTURE IN IT,
BUT HAVING A SOCCER PLAYER'S BABY DOES?
WAS BRUNO RIGHT?
REGARDING THE GOALKEEPER BRUNO'S CASE, I ASK MYSELF,
WHO CAN WE TRUST?
SHE WAS A PORN STAR!
SHE NEEDS TO GO FUCK HERSELF
SEEMS TO ME LIKE SHE'S LOOKING FOR HER 15 MINUTES OF FAME
BRUNO ACCUSED OF KIDNAPPING?
TRASHY HO GOT A FEW SLAPS
NOW SHE'S SAYING SHE WAS FORCED TO GET AN ABORTION
SHE GOT THE FAME SHE WANTED!
JUST A HUSTLER WHO FAILED
GOLD DIGGER!
POOR BRUNO!
Do you have any proof? Anything you can tell us that would prove your story?
ELIZA, PREGNANT FROM FLAMENGO GOALKEEPER, ACCUSES HIM OF ASSAULT
Unfortunately, no. Only my friend knows that I was with him.
-Because I woke her up to tell her. -But only that he was at your house...
-Yes. -...and you left with him.
-Other than that, can't prove anything. -That's right. I can't prove it.
[woman] You underwent an examination, and it was proven that you were assaulted.
FORENSICS CONFIRM ASSAULT
But people are saying that you can't prove with certainty that it was Bruno.
And there are people who have raised the possibility
that when things got really bad for Eliza,
she hurt herself in order to harm Bruno's image.
That's what you wanted to clarify, right Eliza?
I wanted to give my side of the story, because people are criticizing me,
claiming that I want fame, but I don't need that.
Because fame doesn't bring health.
It won't bring happiness, and it won't protect my child.
Eliza did everything right.
Eliza sought justice, she had lawyers,
she went to the police station to file a police report.
The judge at the time denies her any protective measures
that could have been taken,
because she believed Eliza wasn't entitled to that right.
So she goes to the media.
She asked everyone for help, but Eliza was not heard.
FIVE THREE-TIME CHAMPIONS FROM RIO
[journalist] In the photo on this banner, Bruno is one of the highlights.
Despite all the problems he's facing in court,
the goalkeeper's contract has yet to be terminated by the team.
Look, I still have a two-year contract with Flamengo, right?
So I expect to fulfill it.
FLAMENGO'S PRESIDENT
Everyone has their virtues and their flaws.
I can't disturb the whole team, that's my only concern.
Everything that happened was greatly influenced by soccer itself.
Because Bruno ended up not being called to testify,
the lead detective was changed for the case.
[mysterious music playing]
GOALKEEPER COULDN'T TESTIFY BECAUSE OF A MATCH, SAYS LAWYER
OCTOBER 2009
ACCUSED OF KIDNAPPING, FALSE IMPRISONMENT AND THREATS
-[reporter] Why are you leaving Rio? -Because I'm afraid of Bruno's threats.
-[reporter] Where are you going? -To Paraná.
-[reporter] You gonna stay with friends? -Yes, that's right.
I'll be staying with close friends.
-[reporter] Bruno called today? -No.
-[reporter] What if he does? -I won't answer.
If he calls me, I'll call the police.
[reporter] He's saying you're crazy, that you're making this up.
He's crazy, not me.
[ominous music playing]
[woman] After that, she got scared.
ELIZA'S FRIEND TESTIMONY
She asked me to say that she was in Foz do Iguaçu
with her family if anybody asked.
Of course, I knew she was in São Paulo...
but she wanted people to think that she was in Paraná.
Eliza really... fought alone.
Not just against Bruno, against a nation, against all of Bruno's fans,
and against this whole male structure rooted in Brazilian society,
especially in the world of soccer.
She was an invisible victim.
[contemplative music playing]
NOVEMBER 2009
Are your expectations high for the health of the baby?
I hope so, yes.
Is this baby loved? Have you always wanted to become a mother?
Of course. Being a mother is everything in a woman's life.
THE LAST INTERVIEW WITH ELIZA BEFORE DISAPPEARING!
The results are ready,
and I'm going to explain to her the situation.
From the ultrasound here we can tell it's a healthy baby.
And the expected date of delivery
is going to be around
the tenth of February, 2010.
Do you believe that those threats you mentioned are over
and he can't harm you anymore?
Or are you still very much afraid that something could happen to you?
At first I was afraid, but now I'm relaxed, I'm calmer.
-Your baby is a boy. -Yes.
[journalist] And what will his name be?
-[Eliza] Bruno. -[tense music playing]
[gentle, melodic music playing]
She used to always say that her son would be a goalkeeper.
"My son will be a goalkeeper,
and he's going to be the best of the best."
She was always taking care of him.
Bathing him, making sure he was fed,
everything at the right time.
And she would say, "Things can be missing for me,
but not for my son."
I had a very difficult relationship with Luis Carlos.
It was a violent one, full of threats, and break-ups.
And Eliza had the exact same life
as me.
Unlike her,
I left, I ran,
saved myself.
She didn't.
She faced it.
She was completely fearless.
"Fear" was a word that didn't exist in her vocabulary.
And fear... is
essential for a human being.
[contemplative music playing]
JULY 2010
[reporter] Witnesses, including friends of the goalkeeper...
ONE MONTH AFTER ELIZA'S DISAPPEARANCE
...said that Bruno's wife, Dayanne, assisted in the kidnapping
of Eliza Samudio's baby.
[Dayanne] The lead detective wanted to see me.
When I arrived at the station, Detective Alessandra asked to meet me.
And she sat me down and asked, "Where's the baby?"
"And where's Eliza?"
At first, I denied to comment.
"I don't know."
But that's when I started to get scared.
Really scared.
[dramatic music playing]
It wasn't until she said to me, "Dayanne...
Eliza could be in serious trouble."
"She could be dead."
"Her baby's life could be in jeopardy."
[dramatic music fades]
So I told her.
-[dramatic action music playing] -And they went looking for the baby.
Realizing the severity of the situation involving the safety of this child,
one of Bruno's friends admitted to authorities,
"I'm the one who took the baby from Dayanne."
She told me to keep the baby safe
and to drop the baby off at another friend's house.
We finally found the child, with a totally random person,
who didn't even know whose baby it was.
They didn't ask where the baby came from, if there was any documents, parents...
The situation was very complicated.
-They found the baby. -[music becomes quiet and dramatic]
The police brought him to the station.
And from the moment that he was in the custody of the police,
I was charged with being an accomplice.
And I wasn't allowed to leave.
[reporter] The wife of Bruno has been arrested tonight.
She has been charged for handing over Eliza's four-month-old son
to friends of the goalkeeper.
[Silvia] They found the baby in a favela.
We were told the news at midnight, and our flight was at 6:00 a.m.
We went to pick up the baby, and find out what had really happened.
-[dramatic music playing] -[people chattering and shouting]
It was really emotional taking the baby
in my arms.
-I cried so much, you know, holding him. -[contemplative music playing]
It was the kind of feeling that
you can't explain.
Being so close to a piece of Eliza, but having no idea where she was...
It was a frustrating time.
[contemplative music fades]
When I saw that Luis Carlos and his wife Silvia
were the ones travelling with Bruninho to Foz do Iguaçu,
I talked to my husband and my lawyers and said,
"I want my grandson's custody."
"He's staying with me."
[people chattering]
[reporter 2] Eliza's mother, Sonia Moura,
has left the court in Foz do Iguaçu celebrating the judge's decision.
She went straight to the airport in Confins,
and took off to meet her grandson in Paraná.
[reporter 3] This morning, officers of the court picked up the baby
from the house of his grandfather,
Luis Carlos Samudio, and took him to the guardianship council,
which delivered him to his grandmother.
And why is your ex-wife showing up now,
after not being present at all for the last 20 years of her life?
She has...
What are we calling it in the media? A golden goose in her hands, you know?
-When Eliza disappears... -[quiet, dramatic music playing]
...and the police begin searching for her son, her father returns.
Acting like a superhero.
He says that he's an architect, an entrepreneur,
carrying the baby in his arms.
An image that's not true.
[reporter 1] Luis Carlos Samudio is being sued for rape.
He was sentenced to eight years in the first instance,
but intends to appeal for probation.
In light of the fact that he was convicted in court,
he lost his right to be with his grandson.
And so he disappears again from the story.
Just as he appeared, he disappears.
[man] Watch your head.
[man] There was a news report about finding the child.
[journalist] Detective, can you give us an update?
Excuse me, I have work to do.
[journalist] Where are you going now?
The next day, we went to Contagem...
LEAD DETECTIVE
...and we started the investigation for real.
[contemplative music playing]
Something wasn't right.
-Where's the child's mom? -[contemplative music fades]
[journalist 1] When was the last time you were with her?
We were last together around...
Well, I can't say exactly when it was,
but it was probably around two or three months ago, when I met the child.
[journalist 2] Did she give you the baby or was it someone else?
No, I think...
Just like my lawyer said, I can't say anything right now.
But Macarrão brought him. He's a good friend that works for me.
He ended up giving me the baby.
BRUNO'S FRIEND
He said that she had left the child with him
to deal with some personal problems.
He's my employee, and he can answer you better than me.
I was separated from Bruno
at the time.
So when Bruno came to Minas Gerais,
around the time of what happened to Eliza,
I was already at the ranch.
I was looking for housing in Minas Gerais.
Bruno asked me to look after the baby while he was gone.
I asked him, "Where's the baby's mother?"
He said she gave the baby to Macarrão,
and then Bruno gave the baby to me and told me to take care of him.
I believed Bruno.
[contemplative music playing]
[breathing deeply]
I really did.
WIFE SPEAKS OUT ABOUT THE BABY
DAYANNE ACCUSES ELIZA OF ABANDONING THE CHILD
AND CLAIMS TO HAVE TAKEN GOOD CARE OF BRUNINHO
JUNE 2010
JULY 2010
ONE MONTH AFTER ELIZA'S DISAPPEARANCE
I hired a cab with a friend of mine...
JOURNALIST
...who's a photographer, to take us to Esmeraldas.
We wanted to go to Bruno's ranch.
Because we believed that Eliza would have been there before she disappeared.
We walked around the ranch a number of times to examine the place,
and see what we could find.
We came across a few burnt objects,
some clothes, a burnt baby's formula can.
And then I stepped in a baby's photo album
and showed it to the photographer and said,
"Look, what I found."
And we started looking through it.
We discovered that it had nine photos, most of them burnt.
Three of them we could see a baby's face.
[reporter] Yesterday, Luis Carlos Samudio,
Eliza's father,
said that the baby in the photo album found by the Folha de S. Paulo newspaper
is his grandson.
Since this picture was a portrait of Eliza's son,
it was a clue that she had been in the ranch,
and it was used as proof of the crime.
POLICE FORENSICS
[ominous music playing]
[woman] On June 29th, 2010,
my supervisor asked me to examine a vehicle
that belonged to a famous soccer player.
FORENSIC EXPERT VIOLENT DEATHS SPECIALIST
This vehicle had already been seized.
It was being held for investigation at Contagem's detention yard for vehicles.
[reporter] The car of the goalkeeper, Bruno, was seized by the police
due to documentation irregularities on the eighth of June.
It has now become the main target of the investigation
into the disappearance of Eliza Samudio.
[contemplative music playing]
[Angela] When we did an examination of Bruno's Range Rover,
we discovered a considerable amount of blood.
We were able to find roughly 500 milliliters of blood,
which is quite a large quantity.
We took some blood collections to run tests with,
and those tests revealed two profiles of DNA.
One that was matched to a male,
and another one that was female that matched Eliza.
So with that evidence we were able to conclude
that a fight had happened in the car between a man and Eliza.
JULY 2010
[lively drum music playing]
[journalist] Bruno, how are you and your family handling this,
all the harassment you've been facing?
It's been embarrassing.
But like I've said, I'm leaving everything in God's hands,
and I trust that He knows what He's doing.
I pray for her to show up and bring an end to this situation.
Because it's gone on long enough, and it makes me upset.
-[journalist] Do you think she's alive? -I expect it. Of course.
That's what we all want, isn't it?
Of course I want her to show up
so we can finally put an end to this situation for good.
All of Bruno's idiotic lies while being interviewed by the media were priceless.
I would collect all of this footage,
and then I'd take copies of his interviews, send it to Investigation.
[intriguing music playing]
To show his contradictions from one interview to the next.
They were all different.
We listened to so many different stories.
His friends, his gardener, everyone.
We detailed everything, and at the right time...
[intriguing music fades]
...the perfect time...
we arrested them all.
JULY 7, 2010
[reporter 1] At five a.m., policemen from Rio and Minas Gerais
went to the condo where Bruno lives,
but he wasn't found.
[dramatic music playing]
[reporter 2] On the same morning, Bruno's lawyer said that he would surrender.
I don't know where he is, probably in Rio.
FLAMENGO'S LAWYER
He'll go to the station as soon as I reach him.
[journalist] Bruno's here. He's just arrived! It's chaotic.
[reporter 3] The goalkeeper Bruno and his friend, "Macarrão,"
surrendered around five p.m. At the police station.
They were received by a large crowd.
-[crowd shouting] -[tense music playing]
[Marixa] This was the biggest challenge of my career
because it was a massive investigation.
It involved nine individuals,
one of them being the goalkeeper
of the largest soccer team in Brazil.
There were around 50 lawyers
and the testimony of roughly 150 witnesses
that all had to be heard during the preliminary investigation.
[reporter 3] The trial of goalkeeper Bruno begins this morning.
[reporter 4] A motorcade of armored vehicles escorted Bruno Fernandes
from the Nelson Hungria Maximum Security Penitentiary to Contagem's court,
-in the region of Belo Horizonte. -[dramatic music playing]
SPECIAL OPS
[reporter 5] Bruno Fernandes has just arrived at the courthouse
in the city of Contagem,
where in just a few minutes, he and his ex-wife,
Dayanne Rodrigues, will face trial.
-[people chanting] Bruno! Bruno! -[people clapping]
Bruno! Bruno!
[indistinct chatter]
[woman] Jesus! I'm rooting for you, Bruno!
I'm praying for you in the name of God!
"I CAN DO ALL THINGS THROUGH CHRIST WHO STRENGTHENS ME."
DEAR FRIEND AND ETERNAL IDOL, WE STAND BESIDE YOU
WE SHALL WIN!
THEY'RE MAKING ELIZA OUT TO BE A SAINT...
THE BABY TRAP CAME AT A HIGH PRICE FOR HER
A LOT OF GIRLS OUT THERE ARE TRYING TO PULL ELIZA SAMUDIO'S STUNT
SHE DIED 'CAUSE SHE WAS MONEY HUNGRY
When the police car arrived that was escorting the men who were arrested...
LAWYER
...and the cops opened up the car door for them,
Bruno's fans screamed.
They were... hysterical.
"You're so beautiful," "You're hot," "You're sexy," "I love you."
But when the women that were arrested arrived,
the crowd screamed misogynistic things.
"Dumb blonde,"
"Home wrecker."
"You're a slut, and your hair looks terrible."
[woman] Dumb blonde!
[crowd jeers]
[reporter 6] The trial of the goalkeeper Bruno,
and his ex-wife Dayanne Rodrigues has brought a wave of journalists here
from all over the country.
They are following along, minute by minute
to what is sure to be one of the most captivating trials
in the history of Brazil.
[reporter 7] Attorneys representing Bruno have promised to fight a real battle.
His defense team is of the belief that confession is not a good option for him
because there's not enough evidence for them to convict Bruno.
They did a search of his whole house and found nothing.
BRUNO'S DEFENSE LAWYER
You can't adjudicate a missing person case as a murder,
because those who disappear always come back.
[contemplative music playing]
[music fades]
[judge] State your full name.
FIRST HEARINGS NOVEMBER 2010
[Bruno] Bruno Fernandes das Dores de Souza.
Some of the defendants accused here are your friends
from your childhood
in Ribeirão das Neves.
Your ex-wife and ex-girlfriend are accused
and your friends.
Do you solemnly swear, to the best of your ability,
to tell the truth about these facts?
I swear to, Your Honor.
Did you save Bruninho's life?
Your Honor, at no time was his life in danger,
and neither was Eliza, because I was taking care of them.
I asked if her life was in danger, I asked her if she needed anything.
She said no.
Your Honor, the only thing she said to do was take care of the baby for seven days
since he had stopped breastfeeding.
There are people out there spreading vicious lies.
They're all liars.
They're the same people that think I took a baby from his mother's arms,
and there's absolutely no truth in that.
Because I took care of him for seven days.
I told her I would take care of him, and I asked her,
"Are you going to come back for him?"
She said she would be back in a week to pick up her son.
-Take a deep breath. You're innocent. -I know.
-Be cool. -Always. Thank you.
BRUNO'S FRIEND
Evening, Luiz Henrique.
Good evening.
State your full name.
Luiz Henrique Ferreira Romão.
And, for the court, do you have any nicknames?
"Macarrão."
I would like to remind you that you are not required by law
to answer my questions,
and that your silence cannot be used against you.
However, if you choose to confess, penalty reduction can be arranged.
I've been clear with everyone, he's not only my friend.
He's more like a brother than a friend to me.
I've never had to question Macarrão.
I know the kind of man he is very well.
People say he's a monster, but he's nothing like that.
The man I know is an excellent person, a great father.
PSYCHIATRIST ANALYZES THOSE INVOLVED IN THE BRUNO AND MÉRCIA CASE
[reporter] It all started on this soccer field,
inside the favela where Bruno was born.
It was here, at the spot known as "The Big Hole,"
where Bruno met his future best friend,
Luiz Henrique, or "Macarrão."
The friendship between Bruno and Macarrão transcended the favela.
As Bruno started his career, his friends began working for him.
Macarrão was the right-hand man of the goalkeeper.
Macarrão was always at Flamengo. He was always there.
The guy was at every single training session.
Every player has a Macarrão with them, a pet like Macarrão.
Everyone does. They're the "doormats."
The guys who don't have a formal education,
who haven't accomplished anything,
and whose job is being the friend of a soccer player.
He holds the bags,
or he's the one who turns on the air-conditioning in the car,
so it's nice and cold when the player arrives.
He's the one who makes the bed, the guy who gets groceries,
who buys the beer, the one that pays all the escorts.
[ethereal music playing]
All of the defendants that were sitting in the courtroom next to Bruno,
all of the people that were in the inner circle of Bruno,
in one way or another were taking advantage of him, financially.
-Those people didn't hate Eliza. -[music fades]
Those people were simply afraid
that they would lose the lifestyle they had being with Bruno.
PRELIMINARY HEARING 2010
[woman] What was the nature of the relationship you had with Bruno
before his arrest?
We were engaged.
-[woman] Were? -Are.
-[woman] You are engaged? Very well. -Yes.
[man] What did Bruno tell you about Eliza? What has he told you about her?
Did he tell you she's alive or that she's dead?
He says that he's hopeful that she'll appear.
[man] He's hopeful she'll appear. Did he tell you where she is?
-No. -[man] Does he know where she is?
No.
[reporter] The defense insists the victim is alive.
I haven't seen a body,
I have not seen a certificate of death...
BRUNO'S DEFENSE LAWYER
...and I haven't seen an autopsy report.
We have a big offer, so attention, Brazil.
-[man] Attention, Brazil. -One million reais
to the person that is able to bring back
here Eliza Samudio, alive.
One million reais.
[ethereal music playing]
NOVEMBER 2010
MAY 2010
ONE MONTH BEFORE ELIZA'S DISAPPEARANCE
[Edson] Bruno worked hard...
to get Eliza's friends to tell him where she was.
He tried many times.
Until he found Eliza.
He convinced Eliza to come with him to Rio.
Why? He'd recognize his son.
and... he said that he would pay the alimony and give her an apartment.
He offered to raise him.
But the whole thing was a facade.
He wanted to attract her, and she really liked Bruno.
She liked him a lot.
-More than just a lot. -[ethereal music fades]
I believe.
FRIEND: WHAT DID HE SAY?
THAT HE WANTS A CHANCE...
THAT WE HAVE TO LIVE IN HARMONY...
THAT WE HAVE A SON!
FRIEND: IT'S THE BEST DECISION
HE SAID HE REGRETS WHAT HE DID TO ME
AND WANTS TO PROVE HE CAN TURN THINGS AROUND...
FRIEND: THAT'S GREAT!
IT'S MESSED UP. HE LIED A LOT!
BUT BEING AT EACH OTHER'S THROATS WILL GET US NOWHERE...
WOMEN ALWAYS FORGIVE MORE EASILY, RIGHT?
[intriguing music playing]
[Sonia] Eliza,
she really believed and trusted
in Bruno.
When he finally finds her,
he takes her with him.
He tells her that he's going to take the DNA test and recognize his son.
She was going through a fragile moment.
Bruninho was two months old.
She believed that if he spent a little bit of time
truly being close to his son,
having that intimate contact with him,
she thought that it would change Bruno.
He would like it.
And
eventually he would feel like a father to Bruninho.
[tense music playing]
JUNE 2010
[Edson] Eliza was in Rio.
6 DAYS BEFORE ELIZA'S DISAPPEARANCE
Staying at a condo.
Everything was planned.
Bruno goes to the pregame.
Eliza was going to bring the baby so Bruno could meet his son.
Macarrão tricks her.
[tense music fades]
[Bruno] Macarrão explained everything to me.
He told me exactly what happened.
And what was it that he told you?
That she wanted to go to the hotel on Friday
and cause a scandal by talking to the press.
And my nephew, Jorge, was very upset by this,
and the two of them started having an argument.
They argued, and from what I understand, the two of them got aggressive.
[reporter] The turmoil outside the police station happened
after a shocking testimony.
Inside, a 17-year-old man,
was being questioned about his involvement
in the disappearance of Eliza Samudio.
My sentence has already been given.
BRUNO'S NEPHEW
I'm here to help, not to bring harm to anyone.
[reporter] Hours before he took the stand,
his uncle told Tupi Radio station about his nephew's involvement in the crime.
[Jorge's uncle] They picked up the girl.
I'm not sure how they tricked her, but she got hit by the back of a gun.
JORGE'S UNCLE RADIO TUPI INTERVIEW
The boy was scared. He called me and said, "I hit her in the head."
"Macarrão was at the wheel."
[dramatic action music playing]
[Angela] Eventually, the boy named Jorge came to us.
It was at that moment that he told us the story
of how he ended up being in the trunk of the Range Rover.
And at a certain point, of this tragedy,
he came out of the trunk pointed a gun at her,
she got into a fight with him, and then things started to get physical,
and they both got hurt.
[Edson] She takes a hit and starts to bleed.
Then they start to fight.
She wasn't strong.
He had the gun, she was bleeding from her head.
But even, so they fought.
Until he totally overpowered Eliza.
The two men kidnapped Eliza and her son,
and then they took them to Bruno's house.
She was a captive.
Her head's bleeding.
When they arrived at Bruno's house,
they called Fernanda.
[reporter 1] The woman was described by witnesses as blonde,
very beautiful with braces.
To authorities, that's her, Fernanda Salles,
another one of Bruno's girlfriends.
[reporter 2] She was mentioned by Bruno's 17-year-old nephew, Jorge,
when he revealed the plot behind the disappearance of Eliza.
According to him, Fernanda took part in the kidnapping of Eliza
by moving her from Rio De Janairo to Belo Horizonte.
JURY HALL
[judge] The floor belongs to the defense.
[intriguing music stops]
[Carla S.] Fernanda had already been acquainted with Bruno in 2010.
She had spent a Friday evening with Bruno.
Then one night, out of the blue,
Luiz Henrique asks for her help but doesn't explain what for.
He just asks her to take care of this baby
while he talked to someone in the other room.
She asked, "But whose child am I holding here?"
It was Eliza's.
[dramatic action music playing]
[Edson] Bruno? He was training.
He had a match on the fifth, and Eliza was kidnapped on the fourth.
FLAMENGO VS GOIÁS
[commentator] He comes, dribbles, cleans his path, another dribble,
JUNE 5 5 DAYS BEFORE ELIZA'S DISAPPEARANCE
Douglas kicks, Bruno saves! Another kick, and it's a goal!
Just to get an idea...
[quiet, tense music playing]
...how bad Bruno's mind was,
he lost the game at the Maracanã.
Flamengo doesn't lose at the Maracanã. They're the champions of Brazil.
-[quiet, tense music fades] -[clears throat] Well...
Uh... when I got home,
she was talking on the phone with Macarrão about a financial agreement.
I remember she wanted something like 1,500 reais
before all this confusion began.
After that conversation, it changed. She wanted 50,000.
She said, "Look, I have some expenses, I have some debts I need to pay."
So, she asked for some money, just so she could get by for the week,
while she tried to pay off her debts in São Paulo.
But I claimed to not have 50,000. I offered 30,000.
So I made her a proposition.
I told her that she should stay where she was in Rio de Janeiro,
and that I would deposit the money, and we would have a deal.
All taken care of. Okay?
But then, she said she didn't trust me.
She wanted the money then.
So I didn't invite her to my home. She was the one that wanted to come.
She came to Belo Horizonte willingly.
They put Eliza in the Range Rover,
and then he got in the X5,
and they left that same night.
Right away.
[dramatic action music playing]
During our investigation, we discovered
the car had a GPS tracker.
Everything that I've been saying here,
the whole route, was being tracked.
All of it.
They arrived at Belo Horizonte at dawn.
We know that they took her phone away from her.
[dramatic action music ends]
And they held her in a room at Bruno's ranch, a hostage.
[dramatic music playing]
[Monica] She stayed there for six days,
and the ranch was visited by Bruno's friends,
and other women.
The ranch was a constant party.
People were having sex, there was music.
We were all talking.
And, Your Honor, in case you want to check,
people that were passing by on the street could see us.
My ranch is totally open. Nothing's blocked off.
We were talking, I was playing with Bruninho,
I was connecting with my son.
-People are saying he's mine, right? -[judge] You were playing with Bruninho...
I played with him, and I developed a real love for him.
I love kids.
It's been a dream of mine, which few people know, to have a son.
To have a boy.
We were playing with the baby, and I was talking with Eliza.
-[judge] Got it. -Your Honor, it was totally normal.
-[mysterious music playing] -[people laughing]
[water splashing]
[music fades]
We all made something to eat for lunch, she ate with us,
she helped pack everything up.
I can remember the little baby Bruno lying there, next to her.
I could see it all.
She was there with us.
We were all outside, at the top, where the kitchen used to be.
We were all hanging out there.
Eliza included.
There wasn't a moment she was locked away, trapped in a room, alone.
At any point did she talk about being assaulted on that day?
No.
Yeah, I even asked her. She said she wasn't hurt or anything.
She did have a bruise on her finger, I asked her about it.
She said it was an accident with the door.
Sérgio, I read you the report this morning, right?
BRUNO'S COUSIN
You are aware of the accusations...
that are being filed against you in this process.
Did Bruno say anything to you
about whether he was going to the ranch before the game?
-Before the soccer match? -No, he did not.
[Judge] On the day of the party at the ranch,
do you recall?
Was it Tuesday?
Did the speaker situation happen on Sunday
-or was it Tuesday? -It was Tuesday.
[reporter 1] The testimony of Sérgio Rosa Salles
was by far the strongest against Bruno.
[reporter 2] He says he saw Eliza with an open wound on her head.
[ethereal music playing]
[Angela] We returned to do a more detailed investigation of Bruno's ranch
because his cousin Sérgio had told us that he had seen Eliza there,
and that she was being held hostage inside the ranch.
So we went back for him to walk us through exactly what had happened,
and where he saw Eliza while she was being kept on the property.
-[ominous music playing] -[people laughing]
[reporter 1] The police have confirmed that she was assaulted many times.
In order to drown out the sound of her screaming,
the 17-year-old said they blasted loud music non-stop.
[people laughing]
[door creaking]
[Monica] Thanks to witnesses, we know she was verbally and physically assaulted,
especially by Macarrão.
He was acting really violently towards her.
[reporter 1] Throughout her entire time being held hostage at the ranch,
Eliza was forced to call friends and say she was fine.
On the ninth, she made her last contact.
[people chattering and cheering]
[Edson] It was on the ninth,
Macarrão and Bruno, were together.
[ominous music fades]
They came to pick up Eliza.
JUNE 2010
[mysterious music playing]
MARCH 2013
FINAL HEARINGS
[judge] And she left on Friday, correct?
[Bruno] Yes, Friday, Your Honor. Let me explain it to you.
[mysterious music fades]
We had already come to an agreement.
I would give her the 30,000.
On that Friday,
It must have been sometime in the late afternoon,
after lunchtime.
After lunch, around five or six o'clock,
she left the ranch.
Said goodbye and left.
[judge] With whom?
[Bruno] Her...
[judge] Semicolon.
[Bruno] And Bruninho.
[judge] "She left with him, comma, with Bruninho."
[Bruno] Luiz Henrique.
[judge] "Comma, Luiz Henrique."
-[Bruno] And Jorge. -[judge] "And Jorge."
[man] When she was leaving the ranch, did it look like she was going on a trip?
Did she have any luggage with her?
I didn't see any luggage. I already said that.
-[man] Didn't see anyone carrying bags? -No. I didn't see.
[judge] Where was she going to, Bruno?
[Bruno] She didn't say anything, other than about the money,
that she needed the money to solve personal problems in São Paulo.
So until then, Your Honor, I believed
she was leaving.
I believed that was the end of it.
On the tenth...
they told Eliza that they were going to come with her to her apartment...
so they could see where she was going to be living.
All lies.
-In reality... they were going to Bola. -[mysterious music playing]
KNOWN BY THE NICKNAME "BOLA"
How did this conversation start between you and Jorge?
[music stops]
The day they took her
he was talking to me.
I asked him where they took her, and he told me.
-[judge] Mm-hm. -They took her to see the apartment.
So I asked which apartment, and he turned and said,
-"I'm gonna tell you the truth." -[judge] Mm-hm.
That's when he told me that they took her to be killed.
[intriguing music playing]
[Edson] They met next to the stadium and took the road.
Bola was on bike.
Macarrão was in the car with Jorge,
and in the back were Eliza and the baby.
"Follow me."
Bola went ahead.
And he brought them to his house.
When they arrived at
the house,
they got out of the car, and left the child
in the back seat.
Jorge and Macarrão
went inside with Eliza.
To the middle room of the house. There were three rooms.
So, to the middle room.
There was a chair.
And there, next to it, was a rope.
They sat
Eliza
in the chair.
Bola takes her hands behind her and ties them with the rope.
Macarrão helped.
At that point,
Eliza says to Bola,
"Don't beat me anymore."
Bola says, "I'm not gonna beat you, I'm gonna kill you."
He put her in a headlock,
and strangled her to death.
Suffocation is very ugly.
It's horrific,
to be suffocated.
So what happened?
Jorge was watching the entire scene,
and he got really scared.
Jorge told us.
He disclosed everything I'm saying
about the kidnapping,
the hit in the head,
when she was...
When she was captive at Bruno's ranch,
and her time at the apartment,
in Rio de Janeiro.
He told it all, and he showed us the house.
[intriguing music ends]
[reporter] The entire nation of Brazil has its eyes fixated on this address.
Here lives Marcos Aparecido dos Santos, or Bola.
The team of forensic analysts have been hard at work,
since Bruno's teenage cousin disclosed
that the murder of Eliza Samudio happened here.
[siren blaring]
[Denise] A friend of mine,
an officer at the local police department at the time,
escorted the minor to Bola's house.
When they were starting to get close to the house,
the minor began to get really nervous.
The officer said to me, "I've never seen someone so terrified."
"I've never seen someone shivering like that."
"Oh no, please don't make me go inside that place."
He refused to go in.
He was shitting his pants.
He was scared to death.
Probably it all happened there, in that house,
because the young man was clearly terrified of Bola.
And
he wasn't just afraid that there was a chance
he would have to see Bola again.
He was traumatized
from the shock of going back to the house,
and just the thought that he would have to relive that moment of horror.
[reporter 1] The minor claimed that the man was called by Macarrão
just to scare Eliza.
He had no idea that the model was going to be killed.
[reporter 2] After cutting up her body, the former police officer, Bola,
showed up with a black bag and gave Eliza's remains to the dogs.
We're at Vespaziano, in the city of Belo Horizonte,
and the firefighters' work will begin now.
We can see that there are many dogs inside.
According to Jorge's testimony,
those are the dogs that ate the remains of Eliza.
[mysterious music playing]
[Edson] When we arrived at the house,
Bola had security cameras surrounding the premises.
He was watching.
He saw the police were coming and he escaped.
We used a photograph
of Bola...
and arrested him.
[journalist] Marcos Aparecido was arrested this Thursday,
accused of suffocating Eliza Samudio to death at his house in Vespaziano.
-Back up! Back up! Back up! -[people shouting]
We had to attain a warrant to perform a search and seizure of Bola's house,
because Jorge said that he had cut her into pieces
and hid her remains inside the walls.
[mysterious music continues]
[Angela] We did a thorough examination of Bola's house.
We used a forensic light to search for blood,
hair, or other types of biological fluid.
We searched for absolutely anything
that could possibly lead us to confirming
the presence of Eliza on the property.
We had a strong suspicion that Eliza was possibly buried there,
somewhere on the premises.
We had detection dogs, searching for her scent,
but we were unable to find anything related to Eliza
anywhere on the property.
We carefully analyzed the area the dogs had been searching,
but nothing was found.
So, how can we say with absolute certainty
that the dogs didn't actually eat Eliza?
Because if they had, there would be blood there.
It would be impossible to commit this type of crime,
involving the dismemberment of a body, without blood.
[dramatic action music playing]
JUNE 10 MOMENTS AFTER ELIZA'S DEATH
When I got to the ranch, only Bruno and Sérgio were there.
After a few minutes passed, Luiz and Jorge arrived with the baby.
Just them and the baby.
I wasn't there at the moment they gave the baby to Bruno.
I don't know what they said to him.
All I know is that Bruno asked me to look after the baby.
He said Eliza had given the baby to Luiz Henrique.
And she had asked if I could take care of him.
[quiet, tense music playing]
The baby was crying, he was hungry, and wet.
I changed his diaper and I cleaned him.
I heated up a bottle of milk for him,
because he was crying so much, he was so hungry.
[quiet, tense music playing]
And then I gave him his bottle.
[reporter 1] During the interrogation, the prosecutor presented a letter
Dayanne had written to her ex-husband, Bruno.
In the letter, she described that Sérgio told her
Macarrão's intention was to kill Eliza and her baby.
[contemplative music playing]
The thing that really hurts me the most
is imagining... her
dying.
Her last moments living on this earth,
her last seconds alive...
were thinking of her son
having the same fate as her.
[contemplative music fades]
Detective, your team has already managed
to make it past the tip of the iceberg in this case.
Are there any further clues to help you discover where this body might be?
Well, we have to start from the site of the murder,
the execution.
We'll map it from there.
[reporter 1] The focus of the search for Eliza Samudio's body
has now pointed investigators to this lagoon, in Minas Gerais.
After receiving a tip, the police began searching yesterday
in the waters of another lagoon in the city.
[Marixa] "Where's Eliza's body?"
That's the question that thousands of people are asking themselves.
There were so many theories going around.
I heard countless stories where people were sure they knew where the body was.
There were people that said she was buried in a secret cemetery outside of the city.
Or I heard people say that she was put in some sort of a mass grave,
a pile of bodies, with white chalk thrown all over the top.
[reporter 2] An anonymous tip sent firefighters to this ranch,
supposedly used by Marcos Aparecido Dos Santos,
also known as Bola.
[mysterious music playing]
[reporter 3] There were several excavations that took place,
in order to find the remains of the former model.
The firefighters searched inside two cisterns found in the area.
We searched the whole area and we found nothing.
[reporter 3] Firefighters did excavations in the vicinity
of the former Flamengo goalkeeper, Bruno's, ranch.
The excavations ended without solving the mystery
surrounding the remains of Bruno's former lover.
We pursued every lead imaginable,
every clue we had been given,
every piece of information we received.
We would investigate scenes of tires being burned
where someone could've been lit on fire,
clothes that had been discarded on slopes or river banks.
We did an incredible amount of tests,
of every kind you could possibly imagine.
We searched for Eliza's remains.
And we found nothing.
[reporter 4] The search for Eliza Samudio has been suspended
until a new report shows up.
[Marixa] Even without the body, the materiality of the crime
can be proven indirectly,
both with the use of experts, and testimonial evidence.
There was an infinite amount of technical proof
that, in fact, Eliza had been brutally murdered.
Right here...
is the death certificate of my daughter Eliza.
"Cause of death: Use of violence,
applied in the form of asphyxiation."
"Strangulation."
"Burial, cremation."
"The body is considered to be unburied,
because the corpse hasn't been recovered."
This is an official document.
-[crowd jeering] -[mysterious music continues]
[man] Killer!
Killer!
[Sonia] Where's my daughter's body? What did they do to it?
Go ask Macarrão, Bola, Zezé, Bruno.
Maybe they can tell you... what happened to Eliza.
Why is it so difficult to admit it?
When it's clear to everyone, clear to the whole world,
they were the ones that killed her.
I think Bruno doesn't have all the answers
that we want him to have.
I think he has some of them.
Maybe not all the answers, but some.
[mysterious music fades]
[reporter] The change of strategy in the former goalkeeper's defense
happens a year and eight months after his arrest.
According to Bruno's lawyer, Eliza Samudio was murdered.
We are sure that this entire plan was Macarrão.
He planned it, he did...
uh...
the profiling and
he committed the crime, by sending Bola to kill her.
After the crime came to light, after everything had been exposed,
we saw Macarrão when he was shirtless, and he had an intriguing tattoo.
Macarrão had this wild tattoo.
"Bruno and Maka, forever love."
We saw this, and it took the case in a completely new direction.
[reporter] Two years, four months and 22 days in jail
undermined a friendship, and destroyed this complicated relationship.
Macarrão said, "I can't take it anymore. I want to talk."
THE BRUNO CASE: MACARRÃO WON'T TAKE THE BLAME
[Macarrão] I talked to Bruno, and I told him, "Bruno..."
FINAL HEARINGS NOVEMBER 2012
"...I'm asking you not as a friend, but as a brother,
please leave this girl alone, get rid of her."
[judge] So you're saying you were aware that he...
-Because I knew he was going to kill her. -[judge] Uh-huh.
"I know that your family is going to say that I ended your life,
that I'm responsible for ruining your career,
but I need you to be a man and take the fall for this."
"Look."
"You know I wasn't born for this. This is all wrong."
He said, "Don't be a pussy. Leave it all to me."
MACARRÃO ADMITS THAT BRUNO ORDERED HIM TO KILL ELIZA AND SURPRISES HIM
In a turn of events, prosecutors say that Bruno's participation
is confirmed as the mastermind behind Eliza Samudio's murder.
He says, "I took Eliza to a certain location."
She left my car,
entered another vehicle,
and in that moment, I felt that she would be killed."
He doesn't say anything more than that.
It was considered a confession,
and his sentence was reduced,
from 20 to 12 years.
From the moment Macarrão gives his version of the events,
a confession that he undoubtedly made to benefit himself,
he creates proof,
and that proof was then used by prosecutors
in the trial against Bruno.
The defense's strategy
was to encourage Bruno to confess.
[reporter] At her arrival in court, Bruno's wife, Ingrid Oliveira,
says Bruno will end his silence.
He's going to speak, he will.
Will there be a confession?
There's not going to be a confession, there's no agreement.
He will talk about what he knows.
FINAL HEARINGS MARCH 2013
[mysterious music playing]
[music fades]
[Bruno] I turned and asked them...
"Where's Eliza?"
"In God's name, what have you done?"
I asked Jorge, but he told me to ask Macarrão.
Because Macarrão...
helped kill Eliza.
I asked Macarrão, "What did you do?"
"You ruined my life."
[judge 1] And did Macarrão admit this?
He said I was being crazy, I was out of my mind,
but I knew something happened, Your Honor.
[clears throat] At that moment I was desperate, Your Honor.
I cried so much.
I was afraid what would happen.
So I kept asking Macarrão what he did.
I kept saying to him...
[sobbing]
"It wasn't necessary. Why did you do this?"
[sniffling]
[judge 1] Did you know Eliza Samudio was going to be murdered?
[Bruno] I didn't know, I didn't ask for it, but I accepted it.
[judge 2] You already said you didn't ask for it,
but did you benefit from her death?
[Bruno] Yes.
Do you think you could have prevented the death of Eliza Samudio?
-Yes, sir. -[mysterious music playing]
He was the mastermind.
Take Eliza's statements, the way she died.
It was exactly the way he said he was going to do it,
and he did it.
The goalkeeper Bruno has admitted for the first time that Eliza Samudio is dead.
Flamengo's former goalkeeper denies pulling the strings
but admits he was aware of the crime.
[reporter] It was a dawn of expectations in front of Contagem's court.
There were three hours between the jury's decision
and the announcement of the sentence by judge Marixa Rodrigues.
[Marixa] His social conduct is equally unfavorable,
exhibited by the defendant Bruno Fernandes'
involvement in the dark side of the world of soccer.
Regarding his personality, circumstances do not favor him.
He has been proven to be cold, violent, and disingenuous.
Bruno's personality is distorted and deviates
from the standards of normality.
The personality of the defendant indicates a complete subversion of values.
The sentence totals 22 years and three months in prison
in accordance with article 69 of the penal code.
Eighth of March, at 2:22 p.m.
-Sir, is this courtroom adjourned? -[man] We are, Your Honor.
This trial is closed.
[melancholic music playing]
I don't have my daughter's remains. That's what I wish I had the most.
[journalist] Are you satisfied with the sentence?
It should be longer.
Bruno's trial, for me,
was extremely painful and shocking.
It was a mix of bad feelings.
Why not just tell the truth?
He knows what happened. Why not talk?
What's he afraid of?
This isn't justice.
My daughter didn't get justice.
[melancholic music continues]
[Eliza] He said, "I'm worse than you think."
"I'm cold and calculating."
"If you go to the police or anywhere else, I'll come after you. I'll kill you.
"I'll kill your family and friends, because I know where they all live."
"I know every single one of them."
"If I kill you, and hide your body, no one will suspect me."
IN 2013, BRUNO WAS SENTENCED TO 22 YEARS AND THREE MONTHS
FOR TRIPLE AGGRAVATED HOMICIDE, KIDNAPPING, AND CONCEALMENT OF A BODY.
IN 2019, HIS SENTENCE WAS REDUCED TO A SEMI-OPEN REGIME.
HE WAS RELEASED IN 2022.
IN 2012, MARCOS "BOLA" DOS SANTOS WAS SENTENCED TO 34 YEARS IN PRISON.
SINCE THEN, HE HAS BEEN CONVICTED OF THREE OTHER HOMICIDES AND REMAINS IN PRISON.
LUIZ HENRIQUE "MACARRÃO" ROMÃO WAS SENTENCED TO 15 YEARS IN PRISON,
12 FOR ELIZA'S DEATH AND 3 FOR BRUNINHO'S KIDNAPPING.
IN 2018, HE SERVED THE REST OF HIS SENTENCE UNDER A WORK RELEASE PROGRAM.
IN 2013, DAYANNE RODRIGUES WAS ACQUITTED FOR THE KIDNAPPING
AND FALSE IMPRISONMENT OF BRUNINHO SAMUDIO.
IN 2022, JORGE LUIZ ROSA, BRUNO'S NEPHEW, WAS KILLED IN RIO DE JANEIRO
TWO WEEKS AFTER BEING RELEASED FROM PRISON.
[lively music playing]
[man] Bruno, let's talk about your future.
Are you ready to play again? Can you face the goal?
[Bruno] I'm preparing myself.
[indistinct chatter]
[Marixa] Without a doubt, the majority of the attention
given to this entire process, and the greatest focus
was on the athlete who lost his career, and messed up his life,
because of something stupid he did.
Eliza Samudio was erased
by the spotlight of her killer's... fame.
A majority of the press turned their goal
into creating a profile of Bruno,
as if the storyline was, "Poor Bruno, he committed a crime."
And they forgot to talk about the story
of Eliza.
They erased the victim,
and the perpetrator, the one who deserved
the least attention, became the main character of the story.
The announcement of Bruno's return to soccer
caused criticism on social media.
The goalkeeper Bruno presented himself
to Boa Esporte football club, in Minas Gerais.
The team lost all of its sponsors after the announcement of Bruno's hiring.
Nowadays, we see a lot of other cases of soccer players
who rape women and are arrested.
Of course, Bruno's case is an extreme scenario,
because he was found guilty for homicide.
But nowadays, you see a lot of soccer players involved in crimes against women.
[man] Robinho and four other people have been arrested.
They have been charged for assaulting an Albanian woman whom they encountered
at a nightclub in Milan.
[reporter] Today, the Spanish court sentenced Daniel Alves
to four and a half years in prison
for the rape of a young woman in a nightclub in Barcelona.
[lively music stops]
[contemplative music playing]
I'll sit here,
and sometimes I look at Bruninho and I think to myself, "Oh God."
"What's the future going to be like for you?"
"With all these choices that you've made."
I didn't ask for this.
From a very young age, my husband would take him to play soccer.
They would go and kick the ball around.
He would always say,
"I'm going to be a goalkeeper."
Never wanted to be anything else, but a goalie.
He didn't know his story.
He knew absolutely nothing about the fact that his parents were both goalkeepers.
Bruninho Samudio, son of Eliza Samudio,
has signed his first soccer contract with Athletico Paranaense.
The signature of the 14-year-old player's contract
happened on the day his mother would have turned 39 years old
if she were alive.
I believe he's gonna be
a great goalkeeper, like his mother said.
"The greatest of all time. Better than your father."
She would have said that to him.
I'M GOING TO GET MY GED
[contemplative music continues]
FRIEND: YOU'LL HAVE PEACE!
AND DON'T WORRY, IT'S ALL IN THE PAST!
I BELIEVE IT BECAUSE YOU'RE SAYING IT!
I WILL NEVER BOTHER HIM, YOU KNOW THAT!
ALL I WANT IS PEACE TO RAISE MY SON AND STUDY...
TO LIVE MY LIFE WITHOUT FEAR!
FRIEND: GOD WILLING.
I WANT TO GET MY GED SO I CAN GO TO COLLEGE...
I HOPE THAT BY THEN I'LL HAVE ALREADY RESOLVED THINGS WITH MY SON'S FATHER.
IT'S UP TO THE JUSTICE SYSTEM.
IN BRAZIL, EVERY 6 HOURS, A WOMAN IS A VICTIM OF FEMICIDE.
TO THIS DAY, BRUNO HAS NEVER ADMITTED TO BEING THE MASTERMIND OF THE CRIME.
FLAMENGO'S REPRESENTATIVES WERE CONTACTED,
BUT DID NOT WANT TO BE INTERVIEWED FOR THIS DOCUMENTARY.
ELIZA SAMUDIO'S BODY WAS NEVER FOUND.
ELIZA SAMUDIO'S CASE INSPIRED CHANGES IN BRAZIL'S DOMESTIC VIOLENCE LAW
AND THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE FEMICIDE LAW.
[dramatic action music playing]
[dramatic action music stops]