A Brazilian court has ruled that a wife who ordered her lottery-winning husband’s murder so she could inherit his fortune will not see a single penny.
The 2nd Criminal Court of Rio Bonito, in the Rio de Janeiro Metropolitan Region, ruled that Adriana Ferreira Almeida will not inherit anything from her late husband’s fortune.
Adriana was previously sentenced to 20 years in prison for masterminding the murder of her newly-minted husband, Rene Senna, in 2007.
The latest court case was brought about by Rene’s daughter, Renata Almeida Sena, who had requested that Adriana be excluded from her dad’s will.
In his decision at the hearing, judge Pedro Amorim Gotlib Pilderwasser said: “Heirs or legatees who have been authors, co-authors or participants in intentional homicide, or attempted murder, against the person whose succession is in question, their spouse, partner, ascendant or descendant, are excluded.”
He also said: “The inheritance law is based on the relationship of solidarity and on the bonds of blood and affection existing between the author of the inheritance and his successors, which is why, due to absolute incompatibility with the primacy of justice and with the principle of of solidarity, paradigms inherent to the constitutional order, the law prevents those who threaten the life of the holder of the inheritance from benefiting from receiving the inheritance.”
Not only will Adriana not see a single penny of her late husband’s fortune, but she will also have to cover the latest court costs plus further fees worth 10 per cent.
Adriana achieved notoriety in Brazil and further afield after she was sentenced in 2016 to 20 years in prison over her millionaire husband’s death.
She hit headlines again when she was arrested in Tangua, also in the Rio de Janeiro Metropolitan Region, in 2018, 11 years after the crime.
Before his death, Rene won BRL 52 million (GBP 8.62 million) on the ‘Mega-Sena’ lottery, with his estate currently valued at BRL 90 million (GBP 14.9 million).
His estate includes a 9.3-square-kilometre (3.59-square-mile) plot of land in Rio Bonito.
Officials investigating his murder at the time discovered he had threatened to remove his wife from his will after finding out she was cheating on him.
The two hitmen she hired to shoot him dead were given 18 years in prison.
