Rui Pinto, who had been in preventive detention since 22 March, 2019, was placed on Wednesday, 8 April, under house arrest, but in housing provided by the Judicial Police (PJ) and without internet access, by decision of the Criminal Investigation Court of Lisbon.

The order of the Criminal Investigation Judge (JIC) Cláudia Pina, to which the Lusa agency had access, says that, “analyzing the defendant's claim” regarding the alteration of the coercion measure and “the information sent” by the PJ, it was found at the moment, "the precautionary requirements" regarding the application of preventive detention are being altered, adding that a less severe coercive measure "sufficiently ensures the dangers of escape, of preserving evidence and of continuing criminal activity".

“On the one hand, the defendant has reversed his stance, now showing a critical sense and a willingness to collaborate with justice, on the other hand, at the moment, borders are subject to high controls due to the pandemic [of covid-19] , which in itself reduces the danger of escape, and it is also important to emphasize that the defendant should be given, as with any other citizen, the best possible conditions so that he / she remains healthy and safe”, justifies the JIC.

The order adds that the PJ "has the necessary means to ensure that the accused does not persist in criminal activity nor has means of destroying evidence, ensuring that he is housed in a place under his control, without access to the internet."

“Thus, although it is understood that only the application of a measure of deprivation of liberty sufficiently ensures the precautionary requirements, combined with the prohibition on accessing the internet and any device that allows its access, at this moment it is revealed excessive application of the preventive detention measure, whose replacement is determined by the measure of obligation to stay in the house, to be carried out in the rooms provided by the Judiciary Police”, explains the judge.

JIC authorizes Rui Pinto to have company or to receive visits from parents, close relatives or girlfriends, as long as it is guaranteed that they do not have devices that allow access to the internet.

In a statement sent to Lusa on Wednesday, 8 April, the lawyers who defend Rui Pinto were satisfied with the change in the coercion measure.

“Rui Pinto's defence welcomes this decision, and trusts that other steps will be taken towards the total freedom of its constituent, whose revelations have already contributed a lot to the fight against great crime, namely in the scope of economic crime”, underlined lawyers William Bourdon, Francisco Teixeira da Mota and Luísa Teixeira da Mota.

In possession of the investigation are ten hard drives encrypted by Rui Pinto and which the PJ has not yet been able to access.

In January, the Lisbon Criminal Instruction Court decided to bring to trial the lawyer Aníbal Pinto (only for the crime of attempted extortion of Doyen), and Rui Pinto for 90 crimes of illegitimate access, improper access, violation of correspondence, computer sabotage and attempted extortion, but dropped 57 of the 147 crimes for which he had been accused by the Public Prosecutor's Office (MP).

However, the prosecutor of MP Patrícia Barão appealed the instructional decision to the Lisbon Court of Appeal (TRL), arguing that the defendant should be judged for the 147 crimes included in the prosecution, pending that decision.

In September 2019, the MP accused Rui Pinto of 147 crimes, 75 of which were illegitimate access, 70 of violation of correspondence, seven of them aggravated, one of computer sabotage and one of extortion attempt, for accessing Sporting's computer systems, from Doyen, from the PLMJ law firm, from the Portuguese Football Federation and from the Attorney General's Office, and subsequent disclosure of dozens of confidential documents from these entities.

After being arrested in Hungary and sent to Portugal, under a European arrest warrant, Rui Pinto took over the delivery of a hard drive to the Whistleblower Protection Platform in Africa, which allowed the Luanda Leaks to be revealed, a case of corruption related to the Angolan businesswoman Isabel dos Santos.