RIO DE JANEIRO (JTA) — A Brazilian woman who claimed she miscarried her twins in a Swiss skinhead attack was not pregnant and probably cut herself, investigators say.
Police say Paula Oliveira, 26, was not three months pregnant and may have carved the initials of Switzerland’s main right-wing party into her own skin last week. Oliveira claimed that she was attacked by three skinheads, one with a swastika tattooed on the back of his head, as she was leaving a train station and speaking Portuguese on the phone to her mother in Brazil.
Zurich University forensic medicine chief Walter Baer told reporters that "any experienced forensic doctor would not hesitate to assume that this was a case of self-infliction." All of the wounds were reachable by hand and none were severe, he said. Areas particularly sensitive for women — the breasts, navel and outer genitals — were not injured, he added.
Baer reiterated, however, that an investigation was still ongoing.
Oliveira may be sued if a criminal attempt to scam is proven, according to the commander-general of police of Zurich, Phillip Hotzenkocherie. However, Oliveira’s father told the Brazilian newspaper Folha de Sao Paulo that his daughter’s psychological state was "serious and has become more worrisome."
Initial news of the report shocked the Swiss public and outraged Brazilians, whose president condemned it.
"I think we can’t accept and we can’t stay quiet facing this remarkable violence against a Brazilian woman abroad," President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva said.
Paula Oliveira legally lives and works as a lawyer in Switzerland.
Help ensure Jewish news remains accessible to all. Your donation to the Jewish Telegraphic Agency powers the trusted journalism that has connected Jewish communities worldwide for more than 100 years. With your help, JTA can continue to deliver vital news and insights. Donate today.
