A pigeon fancier shot dead three rivals before committing suicide after a disagreement between the group, police in Portugal say.
Police say the assailant, named Cesario, 60, had shot and killed the others before turning the gun on himself after an altercation in the town of Setubal, south of Lisbon.
The city’s police commissioner, Andreia Gonçalves, described the deaths on Sunday as an “isolated situation” linked to an unresolved issue between the men, who were aged between 30 and 60.
The four dead individuals had taken part in a pigeon race, waiting for the return of three of the trained mail birds, and their altercation also involved an illegal vegetable garden.
The Portuguese daily Correio da Manha reports that Cesario, an unemployed former school security guard, used a shotgun to kill the three men.
Alberto Ferreira Almeida, 66, poses in undated photo. He was killed along with 2 other people after a disagreement with the owner of a neighboring land while flying pigeons, in Setubal, Portugal, on Sunday, April 30, 2023
Police are investigating the crime scene in Setubal, Portugal, undated. Pigeon pigeons Alberto Ferreira Almeida, 66, and Mario Lucio Andorinha, and vegetable garden owner Rui Felicio Duarte, were killed after a disagreement with the owner of a neighboring land on Sunday, April 30, 2023
The four dead individuals had taken part in a pigeon race, waiting for the return of three of the trained carrier pigeons
He then reportedly pulled the trigger on himself when police arrived at the scene.
The newspaper names the three victims as Rui Duarte, 47, and Mario Lucio, 65, from the Afonso Costa neighborhood, along with Alberto Almeida, 66.
Almeida had been president of the local association of the pigeon racing district and secretary.
Cesario lived in a cabin next to the couple’s dovecotes and grew angry when they complained about the noise his three dogs made.
According to Portugal Resident, the bodies have been taken for autopsies.
Portugal has restrictive gun laws, but firearms are legal for hunting. Of the approximately 80 homicides that Portugal has recorded on average per year since 2015, about one-fifth are committed with firearms, according to police statistics.
Helder Galveia, who knew Alberto and Mario, told local media that one of the men “always drew attention to the noise and said the dogs were always off leash.”
He said: “The person who fired the shots was a man who used to walk the city streets, pick up trash or park cars, and had previous conflicts with other people.
“He lived in the garden next to the pigeon lofts.”
Helder adds: ‘Alberto Almeida and Mario Lucio Andorinha were very involved in the pigeon sport and in collective cooperation.
‘Alberto was the president of the local association and was known to solve all the pigeon fanciers’ problems. He worked for the association for many years.
‘It is a huge loss. Both were good and peaceful people.’
Pigeon racing is the sport of releasing specially trained homing pigeons, which then return home over a precisely measured distance.
The time it takes for the animal to travel the specified distance is measured and the bird’s travel speed is calculated and compared to all other pigeons in the race to determine which animal returned with the fastest speed.