Arrest Pedophile Suspect, Brazilian Police Find Nazi Memorabilia And Weapons Worth 3 Million Euros

Nazi uniform illustration. (Wikimedia Commons/Richard Mortel)

JAKARTA - Brazilian security forces were shocked by the discovery of several memorabilia related to the Nazis, during the arrest of a man suspected of raping a minor.

Rio de Janeiro, Brazil police announced the discovery of more than 1,000 items in the house of the 58-year-old Tengasa, including Nazi uniforms, magazines, paintings of Nazi insignia, pictures of Adolf Hitler, flags and Third Reich medals.

Not only that, the police also found weapons and ammunition from the heyday of the Nazis, which, according to local police, totaled around 3 million euros, equivalent to IDR 49,367,228,460.

These shocking items were discovered after police went to the man's home to issue an arrest warrant on suspicion he had raped minors and abused other children at his condo west of the city. The suspect was also charged with illegal possession of a gun and racial discrimination.

"He's an intelligent and articulate man, but he's a Holocaust denier, he's homophobic, he's a pedophile and he says he hunts homosexuals", Luis Armond, the case's lead detective, told Reuters on October 7.

"I'm not a doctor, but to me he looks like a crazy psychopath".

Armond said the suspect came from a wealthy family of investors and may have used his inheritance to build a collection. He estimated that a high-ranking Nazi uniform would cost around 250,000 euros.

Police are investigating the suspect's ties to the Nazis and other far-right groups, trying to determine if he was active in the market for buying and selling Nazi relics.

Armond added, so many items were found, making it necessary for the museum to accommodate these items.

"This is something really unusual and surprising", he said.

Meanwhile, citing The Washington Post, the man was charged with sexual assault, unlawful possession of a firearm, and inciting racial discrimination or prejudice.

In the years following World War II, South America became a safe haven for Nazi war criminals and officials fleeing prosecution. Germany and Brazil, which had the largest fascist parties outside Europe at the time, also had strong pre-war ties.

Most recently, in 2020, Brazil's Minister of Culture was fired after paraphrasing Joseph Goebbels, Nazi Germany's propaganda minister, in a video speech.