Wallace Souza was a Brazilian television presenter and politician. He was an elected member of the Legislative Assembly of Amazonas until his expulsion in October 2009. He is commonly known for presenting the controversial program Canal Livre. In 2009 Wallace was subject to worldwide media coverage, when Amazonas State Police launched an investigation into the claims that murders had been ordered in order to boost ratings on his program. Souza died after being formally charged with murder before trial. Two alleged confederates were found not guilty, but Souza's son Rafael was sentenced to nine years for homicide.
Souza was born in Manaus, Amazonas. He obtained degrees at the College of BusinessSão Luiz Gonzaga and the State College Basílio Machado. Souza also attended the Center for Study of Human Behavior and University Nilton Lins. He was married and had four children. In 1979, Souza became a police officer, but was fired after he was arrested for pension fraud and petrol theft in 1987.
Career
Political career
Souza was first elected in 1998 by the Liberal Party. He later took leadership of the Social Christian Party. He was elected to the Legislative Assembly of Amazonas in 2000, and was re-elected in 2002. In 2003 he was made Parliamentary his political career was threatened, as he had already been expelled from the assembly in 2009.
Broadcasting career
Souza began presenting Canal Livre in 1989. The program which was described as "investigative journalism aimed at fighting crime and social injustice," ran until late 2008. Drawing large audiences, the program showed police raids and arrests, with presenters often following police chases in a helicopter. It was one of the most popular shows in Manaus.
Criminal accusations
In 2009, Souza attracted international media attention when he was accused of hiring hitmen to kill five people to increase the ratings of his program. Suspicions were raised because he was frequently first to the scene of a crime, gathering graphic footage of the victims. A former police officer, Moacir Jorge da Costa, claimed he carried out one of the murders. Souza and his legal team denied Souza's involvement with the murders. Souza's son, Raphael, was arrested and sentenced to 9 years in prison for facing charges of homicide, drug trafficking and illegal gun possession.He served 5 years and is now a free man. Weapons, ammunition and cash were discovered at Souza's home when the police conducted a search. In October 2009, he was presented with charges of murder, drug-trafficking, intimidation of witnesses, illegal carrying of arms and formation of a criminal gang. He was also expelled from the state assembly. After an arrest warrant was issued, Souza disappeared and 60 civil and federal police began to search for him. Road blocks were mounted to try to stop him from leaving Manaus. He subsequently gave himself up to police on October 9, 2009. He repeatedly proclaimed his innocence. His brother, vice-mayor Carlos Souza, requested that when sent to prison he have his own cell and be separated from fellow inmates. Vanessa Lima, the former producer of the program, was arrested in December 2009.
