The politically motivated crime and the weaknesses of the investigation that followed are two of the darkest milestones in post-April 25 history, in a chaotic time with hundreds of attacks linked to the counter-revolution that still have no culprits today.
That night, 48 years ago, at the door of the Cumieira Cultural Center (current Parish Council), in Vila Real, Father Max and student Maria de Lurdes Correia entered the priest’s yellow Simca 1000. Inside there was already a bomb planted by Manuel Gaspar, known as Commander Paulo, and by Carlos Miranda, “Favas”, both linked to the MDLP, as the first confessed.
“The package with the device, previously set to explode three and a half hours after the presumed start, was placed on the floor between the back and front seats and the door closed without noise”, confessed commander Paulo, to journalist Ricardo Saavedra , author of the book “O Puto – Autópsia dos Ventos da Liberdade”, from 2014.
The device exploded on the way between Cumieira and Vila Real. Maria de Lurdes, aged 18, died immediately. Father Max, aged 32, was in serious condition, but died shortly afterwards. The investigation followed the thesis of a crime of passion and ignored political contours to get nowhere, despite Father Max being the UDP candidate for the first free elections for the Assembly of the Republic, which would be in 23 days and for which already was on campaign.
