Woman worth £500,000,000 kept locked up in beach house by chauffeur is finally free
An elderly multimillionaire who disappeared from public view for two years has been revealed to have been held hostage by her driver.
Regina Gonçalves, 88, claims that her former driver José Chaves isolated her from her family for a decade and confined her in her own home for two years.
She managed to slip past Chaves and escape through the back door of her home in Copacabana, Brazil, in January. Since then, she has been recovering at her brother’s house.
Speaking to the Folha de São Paulo newspaper last week, she described her escape, saying, ‘I got up, picked up my bag, and walked out the back door. He wanted to follow, but I walked faster than him.’
Regina returned to her apartment last week. Although Chaves, 53, has not been arrested, he has been ordered to stay 250 feet away from her at all times.
However, she alleges that he still controls her assets. During her captivity, he reportedly sold her $1.9 million (£1.5 million) jewelry collection, sold a mansion in São Conrado below market value, and emptied her bank account.
Regina was married to Nestor Gonçalves, the owner of Copag, a card-making company. The couple had no children, and Regina inherited his fortune, currently valued at $500 million (£399 million).
Regina was known for hosting lavish parties, but these abruptly ended in May 2022. Rio de Janeiro police received an anonymous report indicating that she was missing.
She stopped responding to phone calls and messages, with Chaves communicating on her behalf, claiming she was unwell.
Regina said she first hired Chaves in 2011 after friends recommended him. Diário do Rio online news portal reported that Regina married Chaves in 2021 before he allegedly began scheming to steal her fortune, but Regina denies they were ever married.
In her interview with Folha de São Paulo, she clarified, ‘He was never my husband; he was a chauffeur. I am the widow of the great businessman Nestor Gonçalves.’
Her family alleges that Chaves subjected her to psychological and domestic violence and made threats against her.
In a video submitted to court, Regina and Chaves agreed to assume guardianship and legal representation for each other if one became mentally incapacitated. However, friends and family believe Regina was coerced into this agreement after Chaves allegedly drugged her.
Regina’s nephew Álvaro O’Hara attempted to report his concerns to the police after she gave him a note pleading for help. However, he stopped after one of Chaves’ associates followed him to the police station. O’Hara claims there have been three attempts on his life since then.
He recounted, ‘When I arrived at the mansion, I was approached by a man armed with a silencer on his revolver.
The only reason I wasn’t killed was because one of the condominium security guards thought the movement
was suspicious, passed by on a motorcycle, honked the horn, pressed the bell, and the man ran away scared. My aunt lived coerced, oppressed, and humiliated in a private prison. She suffered all types of psychological and physical violence.’
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