This is the shocking moment a young man stabs his classmate who he supposedly had a crush on with a long knife inside a shopping centre in front of terrified onlookers.
Paramedics came to the aid of 22-year-old student Vitorya Melissa Mota after she was stabbed in the Plaza Shopping centre in the Brazilian city of Niteroi on 2nd June.
They performed CPR on her before taking her to hospital where she was pronounced dead on arrival.
Security guards managed to restrain Matheus dos Santos da Silva, 21, who was filmed on CCTV carrying out the attack.
The footage shows the straggly-haired man standing over the table where Vitorya is having lunch alone. He is seen talking to the young woman before she eventually stands up.
Silva then immediately pulls a long knife out of his shoulder bag and stabs Vitorya forcefully in the back, causing her to collapse to the ground.
He remains kneeling over her body as terrified shoppers run for cover.
Silva was swiftly restrained by the shopping centre’s security guards before the police arrived on the scene and arrested him.
Investigators have since revealed that the two were classmates on a nurse technician course and that Silva had purchased the knife in the shopping centre just minutes before the attack.
According to friends of the victim, Silva “harboured an unrequited love” for his classmate, who worked at a cafe in the shopping centre.
The establishment paid tribute to its employee, writing on social media: “What to write? How can you take a person’s life like this?
“Vic worked with us for three years. Always smiling (she had numerous reasons not to smile). Always sweet, polite, studious, thoughtful, intelligent, endearing.
“The Coffeetown Plaza Shopping team is torn apart, in despair, traumatised at such cruelty. She was much loved by all: from the cleaner to the cafe’s customers.
“Fly, Vic. Heaven must have been needing your sweetness. We will carry on with a piece of us missing.”
Silva will answer to the charge of femicide.