João Roberto Bolelli, a 62-year-old cattle rancher suspected of killing his former partner, Priscila Lacerda Custodio, 24, was found dead on Monday, November 2, in a wooded area near his home in Rifaina, São Paulo state. Police recorded the death as suspicious. According to the police report, a handwritten letter and cash were found in his clothing, along with a cellphone, watch and pickup-truck key. An intact .38-caliber cartridge was found nearby; no firearm was listed among the seized items.
The notes described in the report totaled 14,926 reais, although officers said they could not verify the exact amount because the items were wet and the body was decomposed. The letter’s contents have not been disclosed. Bolelli’s cause and date of death also remain unconfirmed. His family’s lawyer, Lauriane Baldini França, told g1 that relatives had been informed the preliminary report gave no cause. She had previously said that informal discussions with investigators suggested a heart attack, but said she had not seen the report.
The lawyer also says 100,000 reais in cash is missing and that the amount found with Bolelli was separate from that sum. She said the family intends to report the alleged disappearance to police after the funeral. Diogo Máximo, who represents Priscila’s family, told g1 that the money does not appear in the investigation he reviewed. The São Paulo state Public Security Secretariat confirmed details in the police report but did not say whether the alleged missing money was under investigation.
The families also give conflicting accounts of the events surrounding Priscila’s death. She went to Rifaina on October 27 with her brother and a friend to return Bolelli’s pickup truck. That night, she was shot beside the Cândido Portinari highway and died. According to the crime report, Bolelli fled in the vehicle, which was found the following day in the area where his body was later discovered.
Priscila’s brother and Bolelli’s family agree that the truck belonged to Bolelli and was due to be returned, but they disagree about when she left his farm with it. Her brother said she returned to Perdizes, Minas Gerais, on October 22. França said Priscila left the farm in the truck on October 23, after a trip to Franca with Bolelli. She said a grandson confirmed that audio messages on Bolelli’s phone discussed Priscila returning the vehicle on October 27. The phone was found with his body.
Accounts also differ over whether other people were present at the shooting. Priscila’s brother and friend told police that people in other vehicles arrived at the scene. Her brother later said Bolelli was accompanied by two people, one of whom he believed was Bolelli’s grandson and took Priscila to hospital. He said the other person left and that neither was involved in the shooting. França denied that Bolelli had been accompanied by “henchmen” and said municipal guard cameras showed four vehicles, including one belonging to the grandson who helped Priscila. The footage has not been released.
Samuel Ramos, Priscila’s boyfriend, told g1 that Bolelli did not accept that she was seeing someone else and had hired a detective to follow her. A friend told police that Priscila had said Bolelli threatened her and hired people to monitor her in Minas Gerais. França denied that a detective was involved, saying the pickup had a tracker required by its insurer. She said it was linked to a grandson’s phone and that the family used it to learn that Bolelli and Priscila had been together in Franca on October 22 and 23. It is not known whether tracker data forms part of the investigation.
The accounts also differ on the nature and timing of Priscila’s relationship with Bolelli. The crime report describes it as a casual relationship lasting nearly four months, and her friend said it began in July. Ramos said their casual relationship began in late 2025 and had ended before Priscila met him. He also said he and Priscila had been living together in Perdizes and that he had proposed to her. França said Bolelli and Priscila had been involved since 2025 and traveled together shortly before the shooting. Máximo said Priscila had provided video services to Bolelli in the agricultural sector and disputed the suggestion that she was shopping for a car with him.
Priscila’s brother told police that on the night she was killed, she said she wanted to leave and did not want to continue the relationship. He told EPTV he heard her accuse Bolelli of hitting her; according to him, Bolelli denied it. Her friend also told police that Bolelli questioned Priscila about a trip to Sacramento, Minas Gerais, and accused her of seeing another man. The investigating delegate, Fábio Branquinho, said the pair were in disagreement about how their relationship would end.
Máximo said Priscila’s family wants the investigation completed and has described her death as femicide. He said claims made by Bolelli’s family will need to be substantiated. The Public Security Secretariat did not disclose the letter’s contents or provide further details about Bolelli’s death. Authorities have not confirmed the cause or date of his death, identified all the people reportedly at the shooting, or said whether the tracker, cellphone and municipal camera footage are part of the investigation.
Bolelli’s death means he can no longer be prosecuted for the suspected killing. However, the investigation can continue to determine whether anyone else was involved. According to lawyer João Pedro Silvestrini, prosecutors could bring charges against other participants if evidence supports it. Priscila’s family may also seek compensation from Bolelli’s estate. Máximo said the family wants the inquiry concluded regardless of Bolelli’s death.
Sources: G1.