The man who pulled the trigger is finally facing justice with what many are calling an outrageous defense strategy that defies credibility.
Henrique Velozo, a police officer who shot Leandro Lo in the head at close range during an incident at São Paulo’s Club Sírio in August 2022, is now claiming self-defense in a case that has captivated Brazil and exposed the lengths some will go to escape accountability for their actions.
The defense’s narrative stretches believability to its breaking point. According to Velozo’s legal team, the 33-year-old world champion – a man trained in the art of controlled combat – supposedly applied a chokehold so severe that the armed police officer lost consciousness, then continued to threaten him to the point where deadly force became necessary.
“My client was attacked first, immobilized and even lost consciousness with the chokehold that was applied in the middle of the party,” defense attorney Claudio Dalledone declared, painting his client as the target in a scenario that ended with a champion athlete no longer alive.
The defense has gone so far as to produce computer-generated animations showing their version of events, where Lo allegedly provoked and attacked the officer multiple times before Velozo drew his weapon. In their telling, the fatal moment was almost accidental – fired when one of Lo’s friends tried to grab the gun from Velozo’s hand.
This version of events requires the jury to believe that a world-class martial artist, surrounded by friends at a social event, would escalate a minor dispute into a life-or-death confrontation with an armed police officer. It asks them to ignore the fact that Velozo, after allegedly firing in self-defense, then kicked Lo’s head while he lay fatally wounded on the ground before fleeing to hide in a brthel.
The prosecution, led by João Calsavara, has presented a starkly different picture through their own artificial intelligence-generated reconstruction. Their evidence shows Velozo, off-duty and out of uniform, engaging in an argument with Lo before the champion briefly immobilized him with a grappling technique. Instead of de-escalating the situation, Velozo allegedly drew his weapon and shot Lo execution-style in the head.
“We have three years of the man’s family giving their version of the case,” Dalledone argued, suggesting that public opinion has been unfairly swayed against his client. “We have robust evidence in the process that my client was provoked and that Leandro Lo always caused trouble in nightclubs.”
This character assassination attempt against the decorated champion represents perhaps the most troubling aspect of the defense strategy. Dalledone claims Lo had a pattern of causing problems at nightlife venues, though no evidence of such behavior has been substantiated in court documents.
The case has taken on additional dimensions with both sides employing cutting-edge technology to present their versions of events. The man’s family has used artificial intelligence to create their reconstruction, while the defense has produced computer animations to support their self-defense claim. These competing digital narratives will be presented to the jury as they decide Velozo’s fate.
What cannot be disputed are the basic facts: a trained police officer brought a firearm to a social event, engaged in a confrontation with an unarmed man, and ended that confrontation by shooting the man in the head. Velozo then fled the scene and hid for hours before surrendering to authorities.
The prosecution is seeking a conviction on charges of aggravated homicide with three qualifying factors: base motives, creating common danger by putting others at risk, and using methods that prevented the man from defending himself. If convicted, Velozo faces a minimum of 20 years in prison.
Velozo remains in preventive detention while awaiting the jury’s decision. In June 2024, the Military Court of Justice ruled that he should lose his rank and position as lieutenant, though his attorney claims he continues to receive his monthly salary of approximately $2,000 while the military justice process remains pending.
The trial, began Tuesday at the Barra Funda Criminal Forum, and is expected to conclude by Wednesday. Eleven witnesses have been called to testify and Velozo will face interrogation about his actions that night.
For the family and fans of Leandro Lo, a beloved MMA star who dedicated his life to the disciplined art of jiu-jitsu, the defense’s claims ring hollow. Lo’s final world championship came just months before his death, capping a career that brought honor to Brazilian martial arts on the global stage.
