CASA PIA

Palace of São Bento, Lisbon, house of the Portuguese Parliament by Alvesgaspar

Madeleine McCann disappeared in Portugal.

For many decades there were reports of child abuse at the Casa Pia children's homes in Portugal.

In the 1980s police dropped one particular investigation and officials destroyed documents.

(Portuguese president denies link to child abuse scandal)

The former secretary of state for families, Teresa Costa Macedo, said she received death threats after she notified the police.

In 2004, news reports appearing in the Jornal de Noticias claimed that Portuguese President Jorge Sampaio and Portugal’s European Commissioner Antonio Vitorino had been mentioned in anonymous letters sent to the magistrates investigating the Casa Pia child abuse scandal.

(Portuguese president denies link to child abuse scandal)

Sampaio's maternal grandmother Sara Bensliman Bensaude was a Sephardi Jew from Morocco

Paulo Pedroso, Portugal's Secretary of State for Labour and Training from 1999 to 2001, was responsible for the Casa Pia homes.

Pedroso was accused of being involved in 15 cases of sexual violence against minors. (Casa Pia child sexual abuse scandal - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia)

Eduardo Ferro Rodrigues, former leader of the Socialist Party in Portugal, was linked to the Casa Pia scandal.

In 2003, the weekly paper Expresso published a report from four children who said they saw Ferro Rodrigues at locations where sexual abuse was taking place.

Portuguese diplomat Jorge Ritto was accused of involvement in the Casa Pia scandal.

Ritto was removed from his post as consul in Stuttgart (1969-1971) after German authorities complained to Lisbon about his involvement with an under-age boy in a public park.[2]

Casa Pia employee Carlos Silvino was accused of procuring boys for orgies outside the institution’s premises.



Paulo Rebelo led the Madeleine inquiry. He also led the Casa Pia inquiry.

After the Casa Pia inquiry, a former director of Casa Pia was quoted as saying that abuse was still taking place at the homes.

Catalina Pestana, who retired from the post in May 2007, made the claim in the Portuguese magazine Sol. (Abuse continues at Casa Pia says former director.)

"José António Saraiva, in an article that he wrote, was the first person to say that many cases linked to Casa Pia were the fallout from wars between freemasons." - SIC Online - Casa Pia abusers favoured by new law

The Daily Mail, 20 October 2007, painted in some of the background to the Madeleine McCann case: (Why Portugal is a haven for paedophiles - the disturbing backcloth to the Madeleine case)

"The existence of this so-called 'magic circle' of the Portuguese establishment, allegedly involved in an international paedophile ring using boys and girls from Casa Pia, was ... likened to an earthquake waiting to shake Portugal to its foundations...

"Pedro Namora, a former Casa Pia orphan who witnessed 11 rapes on fellow orphans, during which they were tied to their beds, sympathises with the McCanns.

"He believes elements in the (police) force have conspired to suppress both scandals, fearing damage to the country's reputation.

"'Portugal is a paedophiles' paradise,' said Mr Namora, now a lawyer campaigning on behalf of the Casa Pia victims. 'If all the names come out, this will be an earthquake in Portugal. There is a massive, sophisticated network at play here - stretching from the government to the judiciary and the police.

"'The network is enormous and extremely powerful. There are magistrates, ambassadors, police, politicians - all have procured children from Casa Pia. It is extremely difficult to break this down. These people cover for each other, because if one is arrested, they all are arrested. They don't want anyone to know.'" - Why Portugal is a haven for paedophiles - the disturbing backcloth to the Madeleine case

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