Cecilia Haddad murder: Marcelo Santoro’s chilling confession over Lane Cove River death

The Brazilian ex-boyfriend of a woman found dumped in a Sydney river five years ago has confessed to the gruesome murder.

Cecilia Haddad’s body was found in the Lane Cove River, in the city’s north, on April 29, 2018.

Mario Marcelo Santoro admitted to a Brazilian court on Wednesday local time, he was responsible for the 38-year-old’s death, going into disturbing detail about strangling her.

He confessed to the crime on the second day of the trial but unlike the Australian justice system, the trial will continue and a jury of seven people will still be required to make a formal decision over a two-day process.

Marcelo Santoro admitted to a Brazilian court on Wednesday local time, he was responsible for her death, going into disturbing detail about strangling her

Santoro had been charged with murder in July, 2018, and on Wednesday revealed he had gone to Ms Haddad’s Ryde apartment without her permission where the pair then got into an argument.

He told the court he wanted to shut her up and grabbed her around the neck and ‘squeezed very hard’ until she fell into his arms. 

‘She fell limp in my arms, I don’t remember if she hit her head on the floor. I picked her up, desperate and put her on the sofa … She wouldn’t wake up,’ he said breaking down in tears, as reported by local publication Globo.

Ms Haddad’s mother left the courtroom during Santoro’s admission while her brother sat in the front row shaking his head, Nine News reported. 

Santoro, who pleaded to Ms Haddad’s family for forgiveness, had told one of the witnesses, who is his priest, to reveal his confession during the trial.

More to come