The mother of a Brazilian actor who was found buried under concrete in a trunk in a property allegedly rented by his friend has revealed she believes she knows why he was killed.
Jefferson Machado, 44, was reported missing in February after his mother got concerned when he had stopped calling her on the phone and was sending her text messages with spelling mistakes that were out of character.
Maria Das Dores has last seen her son on January 27, and the pair last spoke on the phone on January 29 when he told her about a job interview he had in Sao Paulo.
After this, Das Dores received text messages claiming to be from her son, in which he told her he was unable to call her as his phone was damaged after falling in the toilet. He was reported missing after his eight dogs were found abandoned on February 9 near his home in Rio de Janeiro.
Machado was tragically found dead on May 22, when his body was discovered bound in a trunk that had been buried underneath concrete by the outbuilding of a rented home in Campo Grande.
Das Dores has now revealed she believes he was killed by conmen who had promised him lucrative television work but were really intent on stealing his money.
The distraught mother believes the conmen were after Machado' house, car, and money he had recently won from a lawsuit.
She told local outlet G1, as reported by the Daily Mail: "He believed in these false friends who led him to believe he was going to make it, even taking money [from him]. He was deceived, totally deceived, he died thinking he was going to join Globo [a Brazilian media conglomerate]."
Machado was best known for starring in Record TV's soap opera Rei and had believed he was going to be joining the cast of a TV Globo soap which was set to begin recording in February, the same month he was officially declared missing.
Das Dores says she believed that the pair were leading her son on all along, adding: "It was a complete deception. I said: ;My son, this is not going to work, they can't do it, who is this guy to do it?'
"He would answer me that they had friends and that they would make it, thinking that someone from inside would help."
The Rio de Janeiro State Civil Police also suggested that Machado may have been killed after he discovered he was being embezzled.
The Machado family's attorney, Jairo Magalhai Pereira, told the Daily Mail that police in Rio de Janeiro were close to making an arrest, adding: "The police are hearing from two people today. They are very close to finding the perpetrators of this barbaric crime and arresting them."
Das Dores had learned of her son's disappearance after a non-governmental organization found that Machado's beloved dogs had been abandoned at his residence, after which his mother grew suspicious as her son would no longer phone or video call her, claiming his phone was broken after falling in the toilet.
The family grew even more concerned after his location was deactivated and his video cloud password was changed.
Police entered a rented property on Monday where they discovered Machado's body in a wooden trunk similar to those he had in his home, with his hands and feet bound, as well as a cloth in his mouth and a telephone wire around his neck, according to an autopsy report seen by G1.
The autopsy was unable to determine his cause of death due to decomposition, however, police believe that he was killed in his home before being brought to the outhouse of another property and entombed in concrete.
Machado's body was identified by checking his fingerprints, and local media outlet R7 News claims that the home where he was found had been rented out by a friend of the actor, who has not yet been named.
Pereira had shared the news of the actor's death in a statement on Facebook, writing: "It is with regret that I share the sad news of the passing of actor Jeff Machado, whose body was found with strangulation signs.
"This discovery confronts us with the cruelty present in our society, motivating us to seek truth and justice in the face of such impactful cases.
"Preliminary information indicates that the actor's body was found in a trunk, buried in a hole of considerable depth. This situation deeply saddens us and indignant in the face of the suffering faced by Jeff.
"My commitment as a lawyer is to seek tirelessly for truth and justice. It is my responsibility to ensure that everyone involved in this brutal crime is held accountable and punished and that Jeff’s family finds the support they need to get through this very painful time."
Our thoughts remain with Machado's family and friends at this heartbreaking time.