By Mark Vester
In a major twist in the murder case of Arturo Gatti, the Associated Press have issued a report indicating that Brazilian police have ruled Gatti's death as a suicide and state court judge Ildete Verissimo de Lima in the city of Recife, Brazil has ordered the immediate release of Gatti's 23-year-old wife, Amanda Rodrigues.
On July 11, Gatti was found dead by wife in their room at the seaside resort of Porto de Galihnas in Brazil. Gatti's wife thought he was sleeping and did not report his death for several hours. Police believe that Gatti was dead for up to eight hours before the wife contacted authorities.
Gatti's wife has been in police custody since the death occurred. She was pegged as the main suspect and police believe that she murdered her husband. Gatti was found with strangle marks on his neck and a wound to the back of his head. Police found a blood stained purse strap at the scene and their report indicates the strap caused the marks around Gatti's neck.
The ruling of suicide does not make any sense based on the facts of the case unless some major details have not been released. Previously police ruled out the notion of suicide because they did not believe the strap would have been able to support Gatti's body if it was hanging off the ground. A table knife was said by police to have been the cause of Gatti's head wound. Gatti, as told by his wife, came home intoxicated and went to sleep. The wife told police that someone must have entered the room and killed her husband but detectives did not buy the story because the only way to enter the room was with an electronic key card and there was no way to enter by way of the room’s sole window without climbing to their floor. An autopsy did indicate the possibility of suicide but also did not rule out the possibility of murder.
The day before the death, witnesses saw the couple arguing and Gatti was alleged to have shoved his wife to the ground.
