Relatives and friends protest over lynching of woman

Fabiane Maria de Jesus, aged 31, was killed by lynching after being mistaken for an alleged children kidnapper on Saturday evening (May 3) in the coastal city of Guarujá, São Paulo state. According to a friend, Fabiane had bleached her hair the day before the lynching, which made her look like a facial composite of a blonde who was allegedly abducting children for witchcraft. The picture was published on an alert post on a news-related Facebook profile called Guarujá Alerta.

The rumor spread quickly and on Saturday, Fabiane was seen offering a banana to a child on the street, raising suspicions. A Bible she was carrying was also mistaken for a witchcraft book. Fabiane was surrounded by a mob and badly beaten, and eventually died in an ICU.

Following her burial on Tuesday morning (6), family and friends of the victim staged a protest calling for justice.

“It was such a cruelty, we are completely shocked. We want redress and will keep standing up for her,” said Aline Francisca Barbosa (24), a childhood friend and neighbor of Fabiane's.

“We can't let this happen to other people. Fabiane was such a good person, she was always smiling. She was cheerful, merry, and always had a helping hand. It's to grievous to know an innocent has lost her life because of a rumor,” said a cousing, Fabiano das Neves (33). According to him, new protests over the lynching are scheduled for Wednesday (7) and Sunday (11).

Translated by Mayra Borges