The Spanish Supreme Court has upheld a sentence of life imprisonment with the possibility of review for a man known as 'El Portugués'. José Manuel R. S. was convicted for intentionally running over four wedding guests with a car in Torrejón de Ardoz in 2017, leading to their deaths. The ruling confirms the most severe penalty provided for this crime under Spanish criminal law.
Confirmation of the highest sentence
The Supreme Court rejected the appeal by José Manuel R. S.'s defense and upheld the sentence of life imprisonment with the possibility of review. This is the most severe penalty provided under Spanish law for the murder of four people through the intentional use of a car as a weapon.
Tragedy at a wedding in Torrejón
The crime took place on the night of July 22-23, 2017, outside a nightclub in Torrejón de Ardoz near Madrid. After an argument, the perpetrator intentionally drove his car into a group of wedding guests, killing four people and injuring a fifth. The victims were two brothers aged 20 and 25 and their two cousins.
Motive and course of events
The incident occurred after the perpetrator was asked to leave the wedding reception due to his behavior. He later returned by car and, as the court established, intentionally directed the vehicle at a group of people standing in front of the venue, accelerating. Investigators determined he acted with direct intent, qualifying the act as murder.
The Spanish justice system has finally closed one of the more high-profile cases of murder by car in recent years. The Supreme Court confirmed the sentence of life imprisonment with the possibility of review for José Manuel R. S., known as 'El Portugués', for intentionally running over and killing four wedding guests in July 2017. The sentence, the harshest in the Spanish system, was upheld after the defense's appeal, which argued alleged procedural errors, was rejected. The case concerns the tragic events on the night of July 22-23, 2017, outside the Florida Park nightclub in Torrejón de Ardoz, a town near Madrid. José Manuel R. S. had earlier been asked to leave the wedding reception. He returned to the location in an Audi car and, as established in the trial, intentionally drove into a group of young men standing at the entrance, accelerating. The fatal victims were two brothers, José and Iván, aged 20 and 25, and their two cousins, Javier and Sergio. A fifth person was seriously injured. The court of first instance, and later the Supreme Court, rejected classifying the act as involuntary manslaughter, recognizing the perpetrator's action as murder with direct intent. Life imprisonment with the possibility of review was reintroduced into the Spanish penal code in 2015 after a hiatus of several decades. This penalty, often called a 'life sentence', is provided for the most serious crimes, such as terrorism, particularly cruel murders, or multiple murders. A convict can apply for parole after serving at least 25 years of the sentence, subject to a positive assessment of rehabilitation.The Supreme Court's ruling is final and closes the path for appeal in this case. The perpetrator will remain in prison, and the families of the victims, who have been seeking justice for almost nine years, have obtained confirmation of the highest possible penalty for the loss of their loved ones. The 'El Portugués' case has shaken Spanish public opinion for years due to the drastic nature of the event and the number of victims.
Mentioned People
- José Manuel R. S. — Perpetrator known as 'El Portugués', sentenced to life imprisonment for intentionally running over four wedding guests.