Suspect “sought to kill CHEGA leader”
Breaking news this morning – coming from the leader of right-wing CHEGA himself – is that a man has been arrested in Lisbon following an alleged bomb threat at the party’s headquarters.
According to André Ventura, the suspect was wearing a backpack in which he claimed to have an explosive device with which he sought to kill the president of the party (which is Ventura).
André Ventura is currently in Madeira, so out of danger from the incident.
According to reports, the suspect – a man in his 60s – is in PSP police custody, and the building has been evacuated while a team specialising in the deactivation of explosive devices checks it over.
A delegation from CHEGA is in Madeira today, ahead of regional elections taking place on Sunday (May 26).
Since this report went up online, a police source has stressed that the man has not been arrested, merely detained, under suspicion that he may be suffering from “a psychological issue”.
The man apparently walked into CHEGA’s premises in Rua Miguel Lupi, readily claiming that he was carrying an explosive device.
The same police source has confirmed that the street has been temporarily closed off to traffic, and a safety perimeter erected around the building in question.
For the time being, the contents of the man’s rucksack have not been confirmed (see below).
The ‘incident’ was called in shortly after 11.30am.
UPDATE: Inspection of the man’s rucksack did not yield any explosives, a police source has revealed. There is no additional information over what may have been inside the rucksack, but the man has been ‘transported’ to hospital, where he was reportedly admitted due to his ‘abnormal behaviour’ and ‘incoherent speech’.
