Portugal's highest-profile drug trafficking conviction is now under constitutional scrutiny, as the country's Supreme Court of Justice weighs whether encrypted chat evidence used to jail Rúben Oliveira—known as "Xuxas"—violates fundamental privacy rights. The outcome could affect convictions in other organized crime cases.
Oliveira, a Lisbon-born trafficker from the Olivais neighborhood who tattooed Pablo Escobar and El Chapo on his skin, was convicted in November 2024 to 20 years for drug trafficking, criminal association, and money laundering. He has retained Paulo Pinto de Albuquerque, a former judge of the European Court of Human Rights, to argue that the 60,000 Encrochat messages used against him constitute "prohibited evidence" under Portuguese constitutional law.
Why This Matters
• Legal precedent at stake: If the Supreme Court invalidates Encrochat and Sky ECC evidence, "a large portion" of defendants in organized crime cases could see convictions overturned or sentences reduced.
• Financial investment: Oliveira's defense team paid €50,000 to secure Albuquerque's expertise, according to Expresso.
• The constitutional argument: The defense argues the encrypted messages were intercepted before Oliveira or his associates became formal suspects, potentially violating privacy rights under Portuguese constitutional law and the European Convention on Human Rights.
The Constitutional Challenge
Albuquerque's central argument rests on a procedural issue: the encrypted messages were intercepted before Oliveira or his associates became formal suspects. Under Portuguese constitutional law, such preemptive surveillance—targeting individuals not yet under investigation—may violate the right to privacy.
The defense contends that both Encrochat and Sky ECC, encrypted platforms favored by transnational crime syndicates, were hacked by French and Dutch police in operations that swept up communications indiscriminately. Because the interceptions allegedly lacked individualized judicial authorization at the time of collection, Albuquerque argues the evidence should be excluded from criminal proceedings.
Who Is Xuxas?
Rúben Oliveira grew up in the Olivais neighborhood of Lisbon and built what the Polícia Judiciária calls "the most effective" drug trafficking organization in Portuguese history. His network maintained direct ties to Colombian and Brazilian cartels, importing multi-ton shipments of cocaine since mid-2019.
Prosecutors described an operation with infiltration at Portugal's key logistical hubs: the ports of Setúbal and Leixões, and Lisbon's airport. Oliveira's organization allegedly bribed or coerced workers to bypass customs inspections, concealing cocaine in shipping containers filled with fruit and other food imports, as well as in luggage on flights from Brazil.
He was arrested in 2022 and held in the high-security Monsanto prison until his November 2024 conviction. Of the 21 defendants in the trial, Oliveira received the maximum sentence of 20 years.
Impact and Next Steps
The stakes extend to other organized crime cases that relied on similar encrypted platform evidence. The Supreme Court is currently analyzing the appeal, with no fixed date for a decision.
If the court sides with Oliveira, it would establish an important precedent for how Portuguese courts handle digital evidence obtained through international cooperation. The ruling could compel Portuguese prosecutors to independently verify the legality of foreign-sourced digital evidence—a procedural shift that would strengthen due process protections for defendants.
For now, Oliveira remains behind bars at Monsanto, where he has been since 2022. His case has become a significant test of how Portugal balances security and civil liberties in the digital age.
