Michigan Man Charged After Brazilian Tourist Found Dead on Roadside

Suzan Barbosa-Ferreira

A Michigan man faces serious charges after the body of a Brazilian mother, who was vacationing in the state, was discovered on a roadside.

Fareed George Hajjar, 57, has been charged with two counts of dead bodies – disinterment and mutilation and concealing the death of an individual in connection with the death of 42-year-old Suzan Barbosa-Ferreira, the Dearborn Police Department announced in a press release on July 12.

Hajjar is being held on a $2 million bond and is scheduled to appear in court on July 25. It is unclear if he has entered a plea or secured legal representation.

Pedestrians found Barbosa-Ferreira's body on June 30 along a gravel road in Northfield Township, Washtenaw County. Authorities have not released further details about the condition of her body.

Relatives told Fox 2 Detroit that Barbosa-Ferreira, a mother of two, was in the area to visit friends. They became concerned when she stopped communicating with them and missed her flight to North Carolina.

"She stopped communication, we didn’t hear from her anymore, and we thought ‘that’s not usual, something is wrong'," said Renata Santana, the victim’s sister.

Police tracked Barbosa-Ferreira’s last known location to a home in Dearborn. Authorities did not confirm if the home belonged to Hajjar but stated he is a resident of Dearborn.

“Our officers worked around the clock with Northfield Township to identify, develop a person of interest, and gather sufficient evidence to present the case to the prosecutor’s office. While we have obtained some charges in this case, this continues to be an ongoing and very active investigation,” said Dearborn Police Commander Timothy McHale in the release.

McHale urged the public to provide information to help uncover more details about the incident and bring justice and closure to the victim’s loved ones.

Santana has created a GoFundMe campaign to raise funds to bring her sister’s body back to Brazil for a proper farewell.

“Suzan is from Brazil and was in the USA as a tourist, and was just a few days away from coming to the UK to visit me when her life was abruptly taken from us,” she wrote on the fundraising page.