Brazil arrests German consul in husband’s death

• A Brazilian judge orders the arrest of a German diplomat accused of murdering his Belgian husband.
• Consul Uwe Herbert Hahn had been placed under pre-trial detention since Aug.
• Reports suggest he flew out of Brazil and arrived in Frankfurt early on Monday.

A Brazilian judge ordered the arrest of a German diplomat accused of murdering his Belgian husband in Rio de Janeiro late Monday and asked Interpol to add his name to their wanted list, despite reports that he had fled the country.

Consul Uwe Herbert Hahn had been placed under pre-trial detention since Aug. 7 following the death of his husband, Walter Biot, but was released on Friday after a local court ruled that prosecutors had missed the initial deadline to file charges against him.

Following his release, the prosecutor’s office in Rio de Janeiro charged him with aggravated murder, prompting Judge Gustavo Kalil to re-arrest Hahn.

However, according to multiple media reports, Hahn had flown out of Brazil and arrived in Frankfurt early on Monday, a claim that the prosecutor’s office said it was still investigating.

Kalil directed that Hahn’s name be added to the International Criminal Police Organization’s wanted list, as well as that the German and Belgian embassies be informed of the situation.

Prosecutors stated in a document released on Monday that “the crime was committed with cruel means: severe beating to which the victim was subjected, causing intense and unnecessary suffering,” and that Biot was unable to defend himself due to the consumption of alcohol and anxiety medication.

Biot died earlier this month after falling from their apartment in the Ipanema neighborhood due to a sudden illness, according to Hahn.

However, after forensic investigations revealed bloodstains in the apartment and an autopsy of Biot’s body revealed multiple wounds, police arrested the German diplomat on suspicion of murder.

Also Read

Brazil election: Bolsonaro and Lula trash one other in the first discussion

Prior to the general election in October, the right-wing president of Brazil,...