A family man cabbie died an agonising death after being forced to ingest acid during a robbery.
Tiago Augusto Nicolau left home after telling his wife that he was going to his mother’s house to wash the car.
But he never returned.
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Later that day, a local worker found him on a road with severe injuries to his mouth and tongue.
Tiago, 30, revealed that at around 2pm, two armed individuals had forced him to stop the car and had taken him to a remote spot.
There, he was assaulted and forced to drink a corrosive substance, before the crooks fled with his Renault Sandero and his mobile phone.
Responding firefighters took Tiago to a hospital in Leme – north-north-west of São Paulo, Brazil – where he was admitted to the ICU.
There, medics discovered he had also sustained severe injuries to his larynx and oesophagus.
Tests confirmed Tiago had been forced to ingest an acid, but the exact substance is either not known or is known and is being withheld.
The case was originally registered as robbery but is now being investigated as robbery-homicide, following Tiago’s death in hospital on 18 June.
Police are still working to identify the suspects, as reported by Need To Know.
Tiago’s loved ones describe him as a family man who was dedicated to his wife and young daughter, Sofia.
He had been working as a rideshare driver after vision problems forced him to leave his previous job in the Brazilian Air Force.
He was laid to rest in Leme last Friday (20 Jun).
His friend Luana Sampaio said: “Titi, you weren’t just my best friend, you were my brother.
“A guy with a huge heart, full of plans, with a love that overflowed for Sofia, for whom you lived and dreamed every day.”
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