Affected Venezuelans demand justice in the trial against Banco Espírito Santo in Portugal

Venezuelans affected by the fall of Banco Espírito Santo (BES) gathered this Tuesday at the Central Criminal Court of Lisbon, where one of the largest trials in the history of Portugal began.

The process seeks to clarify more than 300 crimes related to the falsification of accounts of the Espírito Santo Services holding company, between 2009 and 2014, which led to the collapse of the banking entity and its intervention by the Bank of Portugal.

Among the victims is Fátima Rufino, daughter of Portuguese emigrants in Venezuela, who explained that her parents deposited their savings in the bank due to the reputation it had at the time. “They took advantage of the naivety and trust of the immigrants and unfortunately they let them down,” Rufino, who represents his family in the trial after the death of his father eight years ago, told the EFE news agency.

Irene Gomes, another affected person, was present at the protest in front of the court and recounted how her father, a merchant originally from Madeira, lost around 200,000 euros in a fixed-term account he had with his brothers. According to his testimony, bank agents regularly traveled to Venezuela to attract clients, especially small businessmen, to whom they offered risky financial products without explaining the dangers. “My father and many others lost everything they had,” he said.

During the pre-trial demonstration, a hearse was parked in front of the court as a symbol of the damage caused by the fall of the BES. The vehicle carried signs with messages such as “they killed our savings, now it is time for justice” and was escorted by people dressed in black, carrying the names of the accused on their t-shirts.

Judicial process seeks justice for 2,000 affected

Francisco Carvalho, president of the Banking Clients Defense Association (ABESD), declared that this trial represents new hope for the victims. “Today hope is reborn to recover the losses and for justice to begin to do its job,” he said. ABESD claims 330 million euros on behalf of those injured.

The judicial process seeks to determine those responsible for the collapse of the BES, which affected nearly 2,000 people in Venezuela, Portugal and other countries. Despite several failed attempts at negotiation with the authorities, the victims have yet to receive compensation for their financial losses.