A 61-year-old local man was arrested on Saturday for attacking a female employee of a pharmacy in Avenida do Coronel Mesquita on Thursday, Public Security Police (PSP) spokeswoman Erica Cheong Im Sim said at a press conference yesterday.
The unemployed suspect is a local Portuguese national surnamed Brito, Cheong said.
According to Cheong, a 35-year-old local woman reported to the Public Security Police on Thursday that she had been attacked by a man during her work at a pharmacy earlier that day. She told the police that she asked the man who was about to enter the pharmacy to present his health code and have his temperature checked. However, the man refused and entered the pharmacy. The victim told him again to present his health code and have his temperature checked. The man removed his facemask, slapped the woman and pushed her to the floor. The man left the pharmacy immediately when the victim called the police. The victim sustained injuries to her face and buttocks.
Cheong said PSP officers scrutinised the CCTV footage of the pharmacy and nearby area. The footage showed that the suspect did not present his health code and refused to have his temperature checked when he entered the pharmacy. When the victim told him again, he removed his facemask and attacked her, according to the footage.
PSP officers identified Brito and arrested him on Saturday evening in the Avenida de Horta e Costa neighbourhood. Brito admitted the attack.
Brito has been transferred to the Public Prosecutions Office (MP), facing a charge of causing bodily harm, according to Cheong.
This undated handout photo provided by the Public Security Police (PSP) yesterday shows the local Portuguese suspect being escorted by a PSP officer to a police station.
