I delivered him healthy hours before. That child was no longer my son.
Em março de 2021, Henry Borel, de quatro anos, morreu em circunstâncias que até hoje dividem versões e consciências. Agora, no Rio de Janeiro, o julgamento pelo tribunal do júri entra em sua fase final, com os últimos depoimentos da defesa antes de um veredicto esperado para a semana seguinte. O pai de Henry passou quase dez horas no banco das testemunhas descrevendo não apenas uma perda, mas a suspeita de que ela poderia ter sido evitada — e que foi planejada. O caso confronta a sociedade com perguntas que transcendem o tribunal: sobre proteção, silêncio e o que acontece quando os adultos responsáveis por uma criança falham em sua guarda mais fundamental.
- O pai de Henry chegou ao hospital às 4h da manhã e encontrou o filho irreconhecível — coberto de marcas, rígido na maca, sendo reanimado por médicos.
- A explicação dada pelo casal — de que Monique fez a reanimação enquanto Jairinho, médico, dirigia — soou imediatamente ilógica para Leniel, acendendo um alarme que ele carregou por anos até o tribunal.
- As defesas dos dois réus seguem caminhos opostos: Jairinho contesta as provas forenses e acusa o pai de orquestrar falsas testemunhas; Monique alega que era vítima de violência doméstica e desconhecia os abusos contra o filho.
- A babá Thayná Ferreira, figura central nos dias finais do julgamento, deu versões contraditórias à polícia e afirma ter sido coagida a apagar mensagens e mentir — tornando seu depoimento um dos mais aguardados.
- O veredicto de doze jurados deve chegar na terça-feira seguinte, encerrando meses de um julgamento que expôs um lar marcado por violência e uma morte que ainda aguarda responsabilização definitiva.
O julgamento pelo assassinato de Henry Borel, de quatro anos, entrou em sua reta final no sábado, 30 de maio, com o início dos depoimentos das testemunhas de defesa de Monique Medeiros e de seu ex-companheiro Jairinho. O veredicto é esperado para a terça-feira da semana seguinte, após meses de um processo que revelou um retrato perturbador de violência doméstica e morte contestada.
No dia anterior, o pai de Henry, Leniel Borel, passou quase dez horas no banco das testemunhas. Com compostura interrompida por momentos de angústia visível, ele descreveu a madrugada de 8 de março de 2021: acordado por uma ligação de Monique enquanto dirigia para o trabalho em Macaé, soube que Henry estava em parada cardíaca no Hospital Barra D'Or. Ao chegar, encontrou o filho coberto de marcas, rígido, irreconhecível. A explicação do casal — de que Monique realizou a reanimação enquanto Jairinho, médico, dirigia — pareceu a Leniel imediatamente absurda. Ele afirmou ter certeza de que Monique nunca fez um curso de primeiros socorros, e foi além: disse ao júri que acredita que a morte foi planejada e que oportunidades de salvar Henry foram desperdiçadas nas semanas anteriores.
As estratégias de defesa dos dois réus divergem de forma marcante. A equipe de Jairinho contesta as provas forenses e acusa Leniel de ter orientado testemunhas a mentir contra o ex-vereador. Já a defesa de Monique busca convencer o júri de que ela era vítima de violência doméstica e ignorava os abusos sofridos pelo filho, apontando Jairinho como o único responsável pelo crime e pelo silenciamento de testemunhas.
Entre as testemunhas ainda a depor estão a mãe e o irmão de Monique, o pai de Jairinho — coronel reformado —, a babá Thayná Ferreira, que deu versões contraditórias à polícia e alega ter sido coagida a apagar mensagens, e o médico-legista que assinou os laudos de Henry. Ao final, doze jurados terão de decidir sobre culpa e responsabilidade em um caso que, há cinco anos, não deixou de dividir versões — e consciências.
The jury trial for four-year-old Henry Borel's death has entered its final stretch. On Saturday, May 30th, the court began hearing testimony from the defense witnesses of Monique Medeiros and her former partner Jairinho, the man she accuses of killing her son. A verdict is expected to arrive by Tuesday of the following week, after months of testimony that has painted a portrait of a household marked by violence and a child's death that remains contested in its circumstances.
The previous day, Henry's father, Leniel Borel, spent nearly ten hours on the witness stand. His testimony was marked by long stretches of composed recollection interrupted by moments of visible anguish. He described the morning of March 8th, 2021, when he received a call around 4:20 a.m. from Monique while he was driving to work in Macaé. She told him Henry was in cardiac arrest at Barra D'Or Hospital. Minutes later, Jairinho called as well, urging him to come immediately. When Leniel arrived at the hospital roughly twenty minutes later, he found doctors attempting to revive his son. The image stayed with him: his child covered in marks, rigid on a stretcher, unrecognizable from the healthy boy he had left hours before.
What struck Leniel most was the explanation the couple offered for how Henry came to be in that state. They said Jairinho had woken to a noise, found Henry collapsed, and that Monique had performed CPR while Jairinho drove to the hospital. To Leniel, this made no sense. He had known Monique for eight years and was certain she had never taken a first aid course. Jairinho, by contrast, was a physician. The logical arrangement would have been reversed. That inconsistency, Leniel told the jury, set off alarms immediately. He went further in his testimony, suggesting that opportunities to save his son had been lost in the weeks before his death, and that he believed the death itself had been planned.
The defense strategies for the two accused have diverged sharply. Jairinho's legal team is mounting a challenge to the forensic evidence that underpins the prosecution's case. They also argue that Leniel Borel coached witnesses to lie and incriminate the former city councilman. Multiple women have testified during the trial, describing episodes of violence against them and their children spanning different periods of time. Jairinho's defense denies these allegations entirely.
Monique's defense is pursuing a different angle. Her lawyers want to convince the jury that she was unaware of any abuse directed at Henry and that she herself lived under a regime of violence imposed by Jairinho. They are attempting to establish that Jairinho not only committed the crime but also worked to silence witnesses. They point to the nanny, Thayná Ferreira, as potentially complicit in episodes of abuse. Ferreira has given conflicting accounts to police and has alleged that Monique coerced her into deleting messages and providing false testimony.
The witness list for the coming days includes Monique's mother, Rosângela Medeiros; her brother, Bryan Medeiros; Jairinho's father, the retired colonel Jairo; the nanny Thayná Ferreira; and Leonardo Tauil, the forensic pathologist who signed Henry's autopsy reports produced between March and December of 2021. A legal ruling determined that Monique's witnesses would be heard first, before Jairinho takes the stand to respond to her accusations.
The trial has consumed months of court time and has drawn sustained attention in Rio de Janeiro. The case hinges on competing narratives about what happened in that household, who bears responsibility for Henry's death, and whether the evidence—forensic, testimonial, and circumstantial—points clearly enough to guilt. By next week, twelve jurors will have to decide.
Citações Notáveis
I knew Monique for eight years and she never took a first aid course. What made sense was Jairinho, who is a doctor, doing the procedures and Monique driving. But no. That raised a red flag immediately.— Leniel Borel, Henry's father, describing why the couple's account of events seemed illogical
This hurts me. This wounds me. They took away every chance Henry had to be saved and they took away my chance to save my son.— Leniel Borel, reflecting on missed opportunities to intervene before his son's death
A Conversa do Hearth Outra perspectiva sobre a história
What made Leniel's testimony so significant that it took ten hours?
He was reconstructing the entire morning, moment by moment. But more than that, he was explaining why the story the couple told him didn't fit. A father knows his child's mother. He knows what she's capable of. When the pieces don't match, he notices.
The CPR detail—why does that matter so much?
Because it's the first thing that breaks the surface. If you're a doctor and your child is dying, you do CPR. You don't hand it off to someone untrained while you drive. That reversal is what made Leniel's alarm bells go off immediately.
Do the two defenses actually contradict each other?
Completely. Jairinho's team says Leniel coached witnesses to lie. Monique's team says Jairinho silenced witnesses and abused her. They can't both be true in the way they're framed. One of them is betting the jury won't believe the other side's narrative.
What does the nanny's conflicting testimony suggest?
That someone was pressuring her to change her story. Whether it was Monique or someone else, the jury has to decide. But conflicting accounts from someone who was actually in the house—that's the kind of detail that can unravel everything.
Is there a clear favorite in this trial?
Not from what's been presented. The jury has heard from women describing violence, from the father describing suspicious circumstances, and now they're about to hear from the defense. The forensic evidence will matter. The nanny's testimony will matter. But right now, it's genuinely contested ground.
What happens if the jury can't agree?
That's the real question no one wants to ask. But it's why these final witnesses matter so much. Someone has to break the tie.