Killer Ratings (2019–…): Season 1, Episode 5 - In God's Hands - full transcript

A NETFLIX ORIGINAL DOCUMENTARY SERIES

I open the Bible
and read the book of Job.

VOICE OF WALLACE SOUZA

Job loses his sons and his wealth.

Bolts of lightning struck from the sky...

His servants were slain...

God took everything from him.

Everything.

Job went through many trials...

but he always said
God would not abandon him.

So, in the end, God rewarded Job...



with double of what he had.

Everything doubled.

And I am sure God will do the same for me.

The Task Force dragged my father's name
through the mud.

WALLACE'S SON

With no shame or mercy.

The decision to impeach

was a matter of life and death.

STATE ASSEMBLY
MAY 25, 2009

The Task Force delivered a dossier
to the State Assembly

that outlines the accusations
against Representative Wallace Souza.

The dossier consists
of more than 500 pages,

and three DVDs

of Canal Livre's shows.



CHIEF DETECTIVE DIVANILSON CAVALCANTI
HEAD OF TASK FORCE

That was a very important moment
for the Task Force.

This moment was...

to share with the State Assembly

all of the evidence

that the Task Force had gathered
until that moment.

Once I've read the prosecutor's dossier,

I will be able to build my defense,

because I still don't know
what I am being accused of.

Wallace faces several accusations,

including witness intimidation,

as well as forming a criminal organization
and drug trafficking.

Does the dossier ask for
the Representative to be impeached?

It suggests signs of wrongdoing,

but above all indicates a breach
of parliamentary decorum.

STATE REPRESENTATIVE

This is the issue of decorum.

Decorum is a kind of image

of credibility and honor

that the Parliament needs to uphold.

STATE REPRESENTATIVE

So we believed
that impeachment would be necessary

in case of breach
of parliamentary decorum.

Unfortunately, Representative Wallace
got himself involved

with people with a criminal background,

who shouldn't be personally involved
with a State Representative.

Moa...

criminals...

there was the issue with Colonel Arce,

who was under a lot of suspicion...

Colonel Felipe Arce Rio Branco,

a Military Police official
who served for many years

as Head of Intelligence.

HEAD OF MILITARY POLICE INTELLIGENCE
ARRESTED BY FEDERAL POLICE

In a Federal Police operation

Colonel Arce was arrested

for tax fraud.

We discovered Arce's involvement
in many crimes.

He committed tax fraud

and there's also the matter of executions.

He had a group of policemen
under his command,

and they did their work
as if they weren't from the police.

INVESTIGATIVE JOURNALIST

FEDERAL POLICE WIRETAPS

Military Policeman: I'm calling you
to say I arrested someone from your area.

- Man: Really?
- Military Policeman: And we beat his ass.

Man: You punched him really hard?

Policeman: Punches?
Why would I waste my time?

Policeman: What do you think
I have boots for?

Man: That's right.
Kick the motherfucker in the mouth.

Man: You should have him killed.

Colonel Arce and his policemen

were acting like a squad
that killed criminals,

but he's still in the Military Police.

He was not expelled from the force.

Felipe Arce was a Colonel
with huge power in the Military Police.

PROSECUTOR FÁBIO MONTEIRO
TASK FORCE

We discovered that

there was a close connection
between Arce and Wallace.

- Colonel Arce: Hello.
- Wallace: Hello, chief.

Colonel Arce: Speak up, boss.
My boss. How's it been?

Wallace: So, how's everything?

Colonel Arce: Let's talk.

Colonel Arce: I'm lonely on this couch.

Since he was
Head of Military Police Intelligence,

he gave privileged information to Wallace.

- Wallace: Hello.
- Colonel Arce: Hello.

- Wallace: Colonel...
- Colonel Arce: Hey.

Wallace: Do you know anything

about a possible robbery tonight
at the Playboy Motel?

Colonel Arce: We're working on it.

- Wallace: So you have the info?
- Colonel Arce: Yes.

Wallace: Because I also got the info.
I mean, they sent a message.

A motel in the city
is going to be robbed.

"Can you confirm
so I can send my crew in?"

It's there.

It's there, in the evidence.

SECRETARY OF INTELLIGENCE

He simply schedules a time

so they could follow the action.

Colonel Arce and Wallace
were thick as thieves.

They were real friends.

But the Task Force said
Wallace killed criminals

and that Colonel Arce and his team
helped Wallace with these killings.

That is a lie.

Only the Task Force believed in that
because it produced those lies.

DEFENSE ATTORNEY - WALLACE CASE

They may have intercepted calls
from Wallace to Arce,

from Arce to Wallace...

but only because as Head of the Military
Police Intelligence,

he was tasked with helping the show.

FEDERAL WITNESS STATEMENT - 2010

As a member
of the Military Police Intelligence,

you said they would accompany you
on police operations?

- Yes.
- You did?

And did you know about this?

Everyone did.
It was broadcast on the show.

I want to appeal to my friends
in the Intelligence Department,

Colonel Arce and Lieutenant Alan,
to help me here.

If you watch the tapes of the shows,
you'll see that they are there.

The Military Police.

It's like those shows in São Paulo.
The same thing.

But when they started
the Moa and Wallace case,

they decided that this was now a crime.

"You shouldn't have made those calls."

"The Representative
should not have called you."

"If he called you, it meant
you would be committing crimes together."

They made up this story...

so that, in the eyes of the public,
he became a monster.

In truth, Wallace wasn't the head
of a team of killers.

My theory is that he,
Colonel Arce and his cops...

since they killed a lot of criminals,
they called Wallace,

and Wallace would arrive
before the others.

You must understand the following...

the goal was to fight organized crime.

But we know that, with the police,

killing someone is a side-effect
of fighting crime.

We cannot know the true nature
of their relationship.

But the idea that Wallace killed
for his show is a myth,

it's hot air.

There were dozens of wiretaps
between them.

But none of these conversations proved

that they were part
of a death squad together.

So, the Task Force

created another case
to incriminate Wallace,

to destroy him politically.

Moa had said in his statement
to the Task Force

that Wallace and Colonel Arce

had plotted to kill
Federal Judge Jaiza Fraxe.

JUDGE JAIZA FRAXE

Federal Judge Jaiza Maria Fraxe

was responsible for the arrest

of the Military Police Colonel
Felipe Rio Branco Arce.

Arce was very angry,

so he wanted me dead,

and he started to plan for it.

Colonel Felipe Arce had apparently
been visited by Raphael Souza.

Arce allegedly handed him a note,

a note that said,
"Pour salt on the judge."

FEDERAL ATTORNEY

It's an expression
that everyone understands

as killing the federal judge.

Did you find the note?

The note wasn't found.

Criminal organizations prefer
to do their work in secret.

Luiz Pulga was apparently hired

by the criminal group to take my life.

KNOWN HITMAN

It seems he turned down the proposal.

That's when they decided to murder him.

CAMERAS FILM EXECUTION

'MOA' CONFIRMS PLAN TO KILL JUDGE

POLICE TO HEAR WALLACE
OVER PLOT TO KILL JUDGE

The alleged plot to kill the federal judge

was like a bomb to the press

and was widely reported at the time.

INVESTIGATIVE JOURNALIST

The Task Force began to make public

the witness statements
they were gathering.

POLITICAL JOURNALIST

So, most of the statements were somehow
leaked to the press,

despite being confidential.

There was a strategy.

Flood the press with information,

and put pressure on
the members of the State Assembly...

WIRETAPS SHOW SOUZA FAMILY SCHEME

PRISONER LINKED WALLACE
TO PLOT TO KILL JUDGE

With so many accusations
against the Representative,

they formed an ethics committee
inside the State Assembly

to investigate his conduct
as a representative.

STATE REPRESENTATIVE

The President of the Assembly asked me

to be part of the Ethics Committee.

An ethics committee assesses allegations
of wrongdoing by representatives.

But we all had a personal relationship,
as friends,

with Representative Wallace Souza.

If he was impeached,
he would lose his parliamentary immunity.

He could be arrested as a common citizen.

We were all aware of that.

They want me impeached
so they can arrest me

and destroy me. This is their goal.

- And your son is in jail.
- My son's been in jail for three months.

- Do they have evidence against him?
- None!

Not a single thing.

What do you expect for your political
future, for your personal life?

I am sure I will continue
my political career

because God paved the way for me.

So he said the following:

"If they impeach me,

it will definitely be a death sentence.

Because prison is full of guys
I helped to get arrested."

But this House will not do it,
because they know,

they know my heart and my story.

This box here...

is basically what's left
of my father's story.

Everything's here.

Reading the newspapers from that time,

the press was gearing up

to destroy my father's reputation.

Look how absurd this is.

"The Representative
allegedly had a militia."

"Representative Wallace Souza is said
to lead a group of 43 men

owning a stash of weapons,

and committing many crimes,
from drug traffic to murders."

"According to the members
of the Task Force,

there are at least 17 murders..."

Where are those 17 murders?

They are nowhere!

They never proved that.

I had many doubts
regarding the number of kills.

First it was 13,
but then it changed to 15.

Many times we asked the police for proof,

but there was no concrete evidence.

It was all negative,

and it was stressful.

My father had poor health,

and he had many health issues.

All of this aggravated his illness.

The Ethics Committee had begun
its own investigation.

They started taking statements
from people,

including Wallace himself.

At the time, he was already ill.

If I'm not mistaken, a dilated spleen,

a blocked heart vein...

Since he was in the hospital,

we thought it would be more practical

for the Committee
to take his statement there.

But Representative
Wallace Souza preferred...

he chose to do it himself...
to come to the Parliament

on a stretcher, with a doctor,

to give his statement.

ETHICS COMMITTEE
JULY 7, 2009

He was on a stretcher.

It was crazy. It looked like a movie.

His cardio-respiratory system was normal,

blood pressure is normal,
and lungs are normal.

He is psychologically able
to give his statement

today at the Assembly.

So what we wanted

was to hear Wallace's version.

He kept the same story
from the beginning to the end.

That it was a political plot,

that he was being persecuted
by opposing political groups...

His statement will be cut short.

He's not very well.

That's why he has to leave now.

It was not only shocking,

but, at the same time,

we were suspicious
if that scene was really necessary.

My impression was

that it was another attempt
to change public opinion.

Representative Wallace Souza
turned that into a spectacle.

Nothing was staged.

He really had health issues.

He suffered greatly.

STATEMENT RAISES MORE DOUBTS

THE ASSEMBLY GIVES SIGNS
OF WALLACE ACQUITTAL

WALLACE CAUSED EMBARRASSMENT
AMONG REPRESENTATIVES

Both the Task Force

and Representative Wallace Souza
used the press

to manipulate or influence public opinion.

'I'M INNOCENT'

The Task Force understood
they needed support from the press.

POLICE INVESTIGATING 40 LEADS FROM 'MOA'

DOSSIER LINKS WALLACE
TO A SERIES OF CRIMES

That's when they started to release
new information about the case every day.

Wallace was being treated in São Paulo,

and I suggested we go to the mall
to grab a bite.

WALLACE'S SISTER

We were sitting...

and suddenly...

it was there on TV...

The politician also hosted a TV show

that showed scenes of murdered people.

Now for the gruesome detail.

The police believe
these deaths were ordered

by the Representative himself.

Here's the body. It's still...

Fantástico was highly popular,

and also one of the most watched shows
in Brazil.

It's a news program that airs
every Sunday,

and they had a biased edit.

The highest voted representative
in Amazon State,

Wallace is investigated
for criminal conspiracy,

association with drug trafficking,

and illegal possession of weapons.

It was about how he ordered the killings,

so he could film them as stories.

So that's what caught the attention
of Fantástico.

Some of the killings shown
in the Representative's show

were commissioned
by the politician himself.

All of their claims were being confirmed
by the Task Force.

He decided that crimes would be committed

to create news for the show.

That practically destroyed my father,

because it showed the world a fantasy,

a biased report
for the whole of Brazil to see.

Fifteen people linked to him
have already been arrested,

including a Colonel
from Military Police Intelligence,

several police officers,
and the Representative's own son.

I'm innocent.

The wealth of evidence against
the Representative is immense

for association with drug traffic
and criminal conspiracy.

For him, that was... horrible.

It was too much,

that was what hurt Wallace the most.

That's what tormented him the most.

It made him cry a lot

when they said he was a drug trafficker.

He felt a lot of shame.

At the time, he told me

that he was not far
from taking his own life.

It had a big effect on Manaus
and the Amazon State.

It made a big impact across Brazil.

Wherever you'd go,
restaurants, shops, everywhere,

the only topic in Manaus was Fantástico.

His popularity had kept growing,

so I didn't find it weird
that everyone was accusing Wallace.

I dreamed of many good things.

Braga and the group that has been
governing the state for almost 40 years

were interested in destroying
the Souza brothers politically.

Suppressing Wallace.

Otherwise, they would lose
political ground.

So, Governor, was there a conspiracy?
The Representative says so.

If there was one, it would have shown up
during the campaign, right?

There is nothing to say politically.
It's a politcal case.

If there's a crime, it must be evaluated
and investigated.

And may the guilty ones pay
for their crimes like everyone else.

I had a dream, it was only a dream.

I dreamed of being a state representative,
and I made it.

I had the will, I faced the difficulties,
I knocked at the doors and was elected.

Are you ready for a new war?

To overcome four thromboses,

two lung embolisms,

a stroke... right?

So I have been given a chance by God.

In the past,
the main criticism about my show

was that I judged others.

And that was the main criticism
against me regarding the show.

"See how he points his finger
calling the man a criminal."

But they are doing ten times worse

than I had supposedly done
back then on the show.

I always say my life is a staircase.

I cannot climb from the first stair
to the last in one step.

So I will have to climb the second stair.
And the second stair is my absolution.

It's my innocence.

From the second stair,
I get to the third. Slowly.

But I am certain
I will reach the last one.

And if I reach the last stair,

in 2010, I am absolutely certain

I will be
the most voted representative again.

ETHICS COMMITTEE
AUGUST 27, 2009

Today, we will hear Representative
Wallace Souza for the second time.

If there is no evidence
for the conviction,

he should be acquitted,

and the report will be filed right away.

If we decide
that he has something to answer for,

then there will be sanctions
against Representative Souza.

- God bless you.
- Thank you.

If I received money for every photo,
I'd be well off.

For eight months
I've been paying a high price,

an absurd price,

for someone who only worked to save lives.

Someone in the public eye,
that everyone knows,

and that, suddenly,
has gone from public figure

to criminal. They won't succeed.

You can sit there.

Thank you, everyone.

The members of the Task Force

were sure that he was a criminal,

but the Ethics Committee,
the way I see it, had a few doubts.

But if you ask me,

"Are you 100% sure Wallace was guilty?"

I'll say, "No, I'm not."

"Are you 100% sure Wallace was innocent?"

I'll say, "I'm also not sure."

If there were crimes,
those should be proved beyond any doubt,

but they weren't.
There was always a third party,

someone else who was said
to have carried them out.

And the Representative denied
taking any part in them.

There was no clear evidence
that this was a...

an unquestionable truth. There wasn't.

That raised some doubts.

It was really long and tiresome,

but Wallace gave us
the necessary explanations

and justifications.

What new evidence have you brought
to the interview today?

I have presented a lot of documentation.

I have also submitted a video.

They said I killed A, B, C and D.

My evidence says otherwise.

So I hope justice will prevail.
I'm sure the report will be fair,

because I actually succeeded in

denying these alleged crimes attributed
to this supposed criminal organization.

A date has now been set to decide whether

impeachment proceedings should go forward.

Once the final allegations
have been delivered,

the Committee has five days

to decide whether to take it
to the Assembly's vote or file it away.

- Good news, no?
- Yes, the first to mention filing it.

Yeah. Filing is good.

Filing... They didn't talk about it before.

At the time,
a brother of mine lived in Europe.

I spoke to him and he said,

"Hey, they're talking
about this bizarre story

about a state representative in Manaus."

Present at the scene of the crime
before the police,

his TV show turned Wallace Souza
into a legend in Brazil.

We've just learned the presenter
was also a gangster

and ordered
the very killings he described.

Then the international press
heard the news from Fantástico.

BBC, CNN...

...crews from England, Venezuela...

- Japan...
- Argentina...

For the first time on Argentinian TV,

a contract killing.

So the international media believed

there was a man who murdered
the competition for an audience.

That's what they reported.
And how the world viewed my father.

My father's voice? No one heard it.

The opinion of the representatives
in the Assembly changed radically

when the story of Wallace's case
went worldwide.

Emails started to arrive,

from people hounding representatives
that Wallace had to be impeached.

At the time, I felt

there had been
a significant change in behavior.

The distance between me
as the Committee's secretary

and the other representatives.

I noticed an estrangement.

From that point, they decided
the Assembly should vote on the case.

The Ethics Committee seems
to agree with you

that there is no evidence against you.

Nevertheless, your case will be voted
by the Assembly.

How do you evaluate this decision?

I think there's a great chance
the Assembly will acquit me.

You can't judge anyone without proof.

I am certain
the Assembly will remain independent.

That the Assembly will acquit me.

I am sure of that,
because I'm in God's hands.

Representative, do you have a plan
in case you are impeached?

Just to help people.

What do you think will happen
on Wednesday?

Do you want an answer
on or off the record?

Personally, I think he'll definitely
be impeached.

I can't see an alternative.

Now, speaking on behalf
of the Secretary of Security,

that's up to the Assembly to decide.

That will depend on their evaluation
based on the evidence we gave them.

Are the police on standby?
Will he be arrested if he's impeached?

Again, off the record,

I volunteered with my colleague
to be at the door

to be the first to handcuff him.

THE VOTE
OCTOBER 1ST, 2009

He slept with me, in my room.

We got up really early.

Our hearts were pounding.

We were worried.

He rented a white suit.

He said he wanted
to go dressed all in white.

To symbolize the peace he wanted to show.

He was very spiritual.

That's what he wanted to show people.

That people didn't see him
like the monster pictured by the press.

We all held hands and prayed,

asking God to give us justice.

And I hugged him tight

and said everything would be well.

Because I knew that if he was impeached,

they would destroy him.

They would end him for good.

The day started with crowds
in front of the Legislative Assembly.

The city just stopped.

The representative with the highest number
of votes ever in the Amazon State.

Students from a state school went there
to ask for Wallace Souza's impeachment.

Shame! Embarrassment! Disappointment!

The people on the streets
want him impeached!

We got there...

and saw militants
who had come from nowhere.

They rented a bus and collected students
from the school

to take part in this ridiculous scene
of the impeachment.

How did they get to the Assembly? How?

They went on their own? I don't know.

They made this whole spectacle
where everything was already prepared.

The State Assembly has 24 representatives.

More than 13 votes were needed
to impeach Wallace.

With 13 votes or less,
the request would be filed away.

My father went straight to the chamber...

and I went to the gallery.

The Assembly gallery has been packed
since midday.

It was packed.

People from the East Zone,
the outskirts.

People pro-Wallace.

I remember he was dressed all in white.

And he seemed very sad and isolated.

It was a very tense day.

Very difficult. Very edgy.

Voting in the process of judging

Representative Francisco
Wallace Cavalcante de Souza

regarding breaching Parliamentary decorum.

A day of great apprehension.

Representative Wallace,
please approach the stand to speak.

Wallace! Wallace!

Wallace! Wallace!

I will try to be brief.

I haven't written a speech.

Here on my right,
is the paperwork on Moa's case.

They made sure
they were leaked to the world.

A farce, lies, injustice.

But all I have to apologize for

is this embarrassment
you are being put through.

I didn't want that. I swear I didn't.

This is what hurts me the most.

And what I ask is just for an opportunity.

Instead of condemning an innocent...

acquit someone
only suspected of wrongdoing.

Because there is no proof against me.

From this stand,
I have challenged the Task Force...

if they brought a single piece of evidence
against me,

I would have resigned straight away.

But to this day,
they never presented any proof.

I am sure that God

will touch each of your hearts.

I believe it, just as I believe
this Bible I brought here today.

"Do not let my enemies, those liars,
gloat over my defeat.

Do not let those who hate me without cause
gloat and be merry,

because of my disgrace.

They do not speak peacefully,
on the contrary,

they make false accusations against those
who live quietly in the land.

They sneer at me and say,
'With our eyes, we've seen it.'

But you, oh, Lord,

you have seen it,
so don't be silent, Lord.

Do not abandon me.

Awake and rise to my defense.

Oh, Lord, you are fair.

Tell them that I am innocent.

Do not let my enemies gloat.

Do not let them say,
'We have swallowed him up,

just as we wanted.'"

That's all I ask of you.

Justice.

And the representatives began to vote.

Everyone was silent.

It was a ballot box. Done by hand.

Anonymously. In a metal ballot.

And I want to say it was really hard

for me

to make my decision.

And after this silence...

The voting is complete.

I hereby authorize,

after the vote,

the results to be shown on the screen.

It appeared on the big screen.

Sixteen "Yes."

Four "No."

Three abstentions.

I declare the impeachment
of Wallace Souza.

The representatives left.

He stood there, alone.

Alone.

I make you this promise...

to stop the violence

and fight those
who stopped caring about you.

What a decisive moment.

We see people have rewarded our work
and our principles.

They succeeded in getting
what they'd always wanted.

So it was a victory for them
and a defeat for us.

How can one person fight against
the press? The justice system?

Please.

Please.

Please, show some respect.

Please, show some respect.

I know you have to right to film,

but show some respect,
for the love of God.

Please show some respect.

It was total despair.

Enormous despair.

I was totally bewildered.

I lost all control.

Relatives of Wallace
are assaulting the press.

You got what you wanted.

You've destroyed a man
without a trial

or a conviction.

The press is simply destroying our family.

What kind of press is this?

You dirty hypocrites!
This one's for you.

Wallace didn't want to talk to the press.

With the impeachment, Wallace Souza
loses his political rights for eight years

and can't run for public office
for this period.

By law, he's now a common citizen
to the justice system.

The Justice Department
has issued a warrant

for the arrest of the former
Representative Wallace Souza.

Since we believe he's the leader
of this organization,

we issued the arrest warrant.

We went to his house
with the arrest warrant.

In the living room,

on the dining table, there were candles,

many candles.

Arranged in a strange way.
It looked like some sort of ritual.

We swept each corner of the house...

searching...

He wasn't there.

And, at this exact moment,

he became a fugitive.

Subtitles translated by Ashley Cardaman