A FEMALE bodybuilder’s body was discovered tied up with marks of stab wounds at her workplace.
Fabiana Maia Veras was found murdered at the clinic in Assu, Brazil, where she worked as a psychologist.
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The grim discovery was made by an employee around 6pm local time on Tuesday.
The victim had cuts, likely from a sharp weapon, on her hands and other parts of the body.
The 42-year-old was found bound and gagged at the clinic, which also doubled as her home address.
CCTV shows a man wearing a head covering, a face mask, glasses and surgical gloves showing up at the property around 5pm local time.
Fabiana could be seen speaking to him before inviting him inside her house where the crime happened.
The police say that the man stabbed the victim before going into the kitchen to wash his hands off blood.
He reportedly spent 15 minutes in the house and then fled the scene in a getaway car.
According to cops, the suspect took Fabiana’s phone with him in an apparent bid to hinder the investigation.
He was arrested the next day outside of his property in Natal – 146 miles from the crime scene.
The bodybuilder’s phone was found destroyed inside his flat and a bag containing three knives, two brass knuckles, and a bloodstained pistol was found in his car.
The suspect is believed to be a 41-year-old civil servant from the state judiciary who had prior connections to the victim.
Assú’s police chief, Valério Kurten, said that the two seemed to know each other as Fabiana showed trust despite the man hiding his appearance.
He said of security footage: “She hugs him, so you can see that there is an affectionate gesture. So, yes, they knew each other.
“She was surprised by his clothing, but she responded, took him, and then we saw the image of him leaving with a hand full of blood.”
Although the crime motive is still unknown, Fabiana may have had a close relationship with the suspect’s ex-partner.
The cops will extract the data from the suspect’s phone to try to determine the reason behind the murder.
The getaway driver – a family friend – had been paid by the suspect “to take him to a psychiatric appointment”.
He was questioned, found to have had no involvement in the crime, and released.
The investigation is ongoing and the blood was sent for analysis to the laboratory to identify if it belonged to Fabiana.
The psychologist was known for her toned physique, and posted snaps of her workouts and mental health advice on her Instagram with over 5,000 followers.
In a post from September last year, she had written: “There are several telltale signs of a toxic relationship, such as a lack of mutual support, harmful communication patterns, constant anxiety and fear, as well as jealousy, attempts at control, threats, criticisms disguised as compliments, and other harmful behaviours.
“If you notice any of these signs in your relationship, it’s crucial to recognise and evaluate what’s going on.”
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