Couple murders man and cuts off fingers to access his bank account

Police launched an investigation after the dismembered body parts of Diogo Goncalves were found in different parts of Algarve, southern Portugal. A 19-year-old woman and her 23-year-old partner have been arrested for the murder of Goncalves. The murderous teen, Maria Malveira, reportedly lured Goncalves to her home before strangling him and dismembering him with the help of Mariana Fonseca. Policia Judiciaria linked the financially motivated murder to the two women. The suspects will be tried in a closed-court in the coming days.

Goncalves' head was found in Tavira area and his torso in the Sagres area of Algarve. Other body parts like his arms and feet remain untraceable, even though they were reportedly also dumped in the Tavira region.

Police believe that Malveira invited the victim to her home under the pretext of performing sexual favours. She then tied her victim to a chair and strangled him to death on March 20. Using a meat cleaver and a sword, Malveria and her nurse partner chopped up the body between March 20 and 25. The body parts were found two days later.

The security worker had been in a secret relationship with the victim while she was also in a relationship with Fonseca. Both women planned the murder to rob the victim of over £60,000 which he had in his bank account.

Goncalves' mother died in a road accident in 2016, leaving the young man a large inheritance. Malveira and Fonseca chopped off the 21-year-old's fingers to use his fingerprints to access his phone. After accessing the victim's phone, the murderers got hold of his bank details. Using the bank details, the women transferred money from the deceased man's account.

The Daily Mail reported that the two women had been charged with the murder of Goncalves as well as the profanation of a body. The women will remain in police custody until their closed-court hearing. A police spokesperson confirmed that the suspects do not have a criminal record.