Current and former mayor of Valongo sentenced to loss of mandate for abuse of power

The current and former mayors of Valongo, Paulo Esteves Ferreira and José Manuel Ribeiro, were sentenced to loss of mandate for abuse of power. They restricted truck access to the Sobrado landfill in 2020, leading to significant financial losses for the operating companies. The court imposed a fine of 100 days at 30 euros each and a joint payment of 61,000 euros. Both mayors expressed shock at the ruling and plan to appeal. The prosecution argued that the mayors knowingly restricted access to the only route for trucks, intending to harm the companies' operations, which had been contentious since 2019.