Leandro Lo, an eight-time jiu-jitsu world champion, died on August 7, 2022, after being shot at point-blank range. The admitted shooter was Military Police lieutenant Henrique Otávio Oliveira Velozo, who is facing trial for the crime.

Since then, the jiu-jitsu community and justice advocates have been waiting for a fair outcome, that if convicted, the accused will be held accountable under the law.

A sudden postponement

Velozo’s jury trial was originally set for May 22 and 23, 2025, but it was suspended after an appeal from the defense.

The defense claimed their rights were violated when the judge refused to hear testimony from private experts, saying the written reports were enough. This marked the first formal delay in the case.

On the morning of August 5, 2025, the hearing began at the Barra Funda Criminal Court in São Paulo. But tensions quickly boiled over after a heated argument between the defense and prosecution stopped everything.

It started when defense attorney Cláudio Dalledone and prosecutor João Calsavara clashed. During the hearing, the defense insinuated that, on the night of the crime, Leandro Lo “was smoking something that smelled like marijuana inside the club” in São Paulo’s south zone, where the shooting happened.

At the time, police chief João Eduardo da Silva — who led the investigation — was testifying. He said there was no evidence in the reports that Leandro had used marijuana that day.

The judge cut off the argument, reminding everyone this was only the first witness and not the time for that kind of debate.

Still, Dalledone showed photos of Leandro’s friends from that night, implying that because they were big and strong, Velozo had acted in self-defense when he felt intimidated and pulled his gun.

The judge warned him again, saying the witness couldn’t answer questions about the technical report since he didn’t write it.

After several of his questions were blocked, Dalledone threatened to walk out, saying he was being disrespected by the prosecutor.

“I’m leaving the courtroom… Tell the prosecutor to respect the lawyer,” he said to one of the victim’s assistant attorneys.

The police chief left the room, and the judge called both sides for a private talk. When they returned, he said the atmosphere was too tense to continue and the trial would be rescheduled.

“Your gray hair doesn’t match your behavior,” one of the defense lawyers told prosecutor João Calsavara.

Leandro’s family reacted with outrage.

“They just dragged out our pain. They made a circus,” said Fátima Lo, the fighter’s mother, to g1.

Emotional, she cried as she left: “I felt sick when I saw him. He has a horrible look — the killer.” She said the defense once again disrupted the trial.

“I want justice, because everything that happened is proven, but the defense disrupted the trial and postponed it. They just delayed my suffering… It’s killing me. I was hoping that on the 7th — three years after his death — he would finally start serving his sentence. But it didn’t happen. Justice will come, though,” she added.

The court dissolved the jury and officially moved the trial to November 12, 2025, at 10 a.m. — almost three years after the crime.

What’s at stake?

Henrique Velozo is charged with triple-qualified intentional homicide, for having a vile motive, putting others at risk, and making it harder for Leandro to defend himself.

The defense continues to claim self-defense, despite witness statements and videos showing that Leandro Lo had restrained him non-violently moments before being shot.

Reports also say the officer kicked Leandro twice in the head after he was already unconscious from the gunshot.

Velozo remains in pre-trial detention at Romão Gomes prison in northern São Paulo, but still receives his police salary, a situation allowed by Brazil’s Supreme Court, which ruled that pay can only be suspended after a final conviction.

In June 2025, he was dismissed from the Military Police when the Military Justice Court unanimously stripped him of his rank and expelled him from the force.

That, however, doesn’t mean a criminal sentence, which will only happen if he’s convicted in November.

Official statement:

“In a session held on Wednesday afternoon (18), the São Paulo State Military Justice Court unanimously declared Military Police Lieutenant Henrique Otávio Veloso unfit for duty, approving the Justification Council’s recommendation. The events took place on August 7, 2022, during a music show at a club in the southern area of the capital. The lieutenant, off duty and in civilian clothes, allegedly got into an argument and fired a gunshot at civilian Leandro Lô Pereira do Nascimento. The victim was hit in the head and did not survive.
Because this was an intentional crime against life, the homicide trial will be handled by the regular criminal court, with a hearing scheduled for August 5. The military court process, focused on his status as an officer, was swift — starting April 24 and concluding this Wednesday, in just 74 days.”

The real pain felt by the jiu-jitsu community

Since Leandro Lo’s death, the tragedy has echoed across Brazil and beyond. Athletes, gyms, and fans have been rallying for justice, paying tribute, and keeping his memory alive. None of this erases the violence he suffered, nor does it restore his life.

Many can’t help but wonder: if the victim were a fellow officer, would the process still drag on like this? How many times can a jury be dissolved before delay turns into de facto impunity?

This delay isn’t just a bureaucratic hiccup, it exposes cracks in the system.

The trial falling apart shows how easily everything can stop, even at the last minute, due to court decisions without convincing reasons.

For nearly three years, the defense has been stalling, downplaying, and pushing the limits of justice for a fighter killed in public, while he continues to receive a paycheck as if nothing happened.

Every trial date for Velozo has been a chance to deliver some measure of justice for Leandro Lo.

For many, stripping Velozo of his badge isn’t enough. For the family, fellow athletes, and the public, it’s urgent that he be convicted and serve a sentence that fits the brutal crime.

The postponement to November 2025 brings frustration, but also a call to remain watchful, to make sure nothing is hidden, and that justice wins out over bureaucracy, pressure, and silence.

Leandro’s family, through their lawyers, issued a statement condemning the defense’s actions:

“The lawyers representing the family of athlete Leandro Lo publicly express their absolute rejection of the conduct adopted by the defense of former Military Police Lieutenant Henrique Otávio de Oliveira Velozo during today’s trial.
In addition to abandoning the courtroom, the defense repeatedly and unfairly blamed the prosecution for the dissolution of the jury.
Regardless of yet another postponement — caused exclusively by the defense — we remain firm in our total confidence in justice and in holding the accused accountable, who has even confessed to killing Leandro Lo.”

Fonte/Instagram

Now it’s up to the courts to finally turn memory into action, and make sure there is no impunity.