The rope jumper who was thrown off the edge of the Skeleton Bridge without safety equipment had made a post alluding to the danger of the jump and how scared she felt.
The reports about her final post come amid new information surrounding the case, including evidence allegedly hidden by company workers, as well as their controversial explanation of the tragedy.
Highlights
- Maria Eduarda Rodrigues was thrown off Skeleton Bridge without a safety rope during a bungee jump in Limeira, Brazil.
- Three instructors were arrested for homicide, and none have reportedly taken responsibility for the error.
- A witness reported company workers hid Maria’s GoPro camera after the fall, possibly to conceal evidence.
Maria Eduarda Rodrigues de Freitas had signed up for what she thought would be an exciting bucket-list adventure in Limeira, São Paulo, Brazil.
Image credits: G1
The incident resulted in the fatality of the 21-year-old woman and the arrest of three individuals, who are under investigation for homicide with implied malice.
A video taken this weekend shows Maria being hurled over the cliffside of Skeleton Bridge and falling 130 feet (40 meters).
After she was thrown off the bridge, a witness could be heard desperately shouting, “Guys, the rope!” pointing out that the victim, a physical education and sports management student, had been thrown without a safety cord attached to her body.
Image credits: dudz.rodrigueess
Maria was pronounced deceased at the scene. Her fiancé reportedly watched as she made the fatal fall.
Moments before the tragedy on Saturday morning (June 13), the 21-year-old took to her Instagram Stories to share a photo of the bridge.
She jokingly wrote over the image, “Who was the crazy person who let me jump off a bridge???”
Image credits: G1
Two of the suspects reportedly tried to flee but were tracked down by a helicopter in the wooded area.
According to the Civil Police, the safety equipment that should have been attached to the victim's body was forgotten and remained tangled on the platform.
Image credits: dudz.rodrigueess
One witness claims Maria was filming her own jump when she was thrown from the bridge without a safety rope.
The witness accused a member of the rope jumping company of removing the victim's camera while she was lying on the ground, per G1.
"The first scene I remember when I saw the woman on the ground was seeing one of the employees removing the GoPro camera,” educator Rafael Goulart told EPTV.
Image credits: dudz.rodrigueess
Rafael said the individual appeared to be “either worried about the equipment or wanting to hide evidence.”
The lead investigator on the case, Andrea Danta Levy, stated that she searched the area with forensic experts but did not find the camera.
Image credits: dudz.rodrigueess
Police suggested that the camera may have slipped from Maria’s hand during the fall.
“During questioning, no one could say where it was. Honestly, I believe it is no longer there, considering the number of people who later came to the bridge looking for it,” police said.
“I believe that, unfortunately, someone may have removed the camera.”
Image credits: dudz.rodrigueess
A nurse who was waiting to jump and assisted Maria reportedly told police that the company charged an additional fee for clients to use a GoPro to record their rope jumps.
"They charged R$180 for the jump [US $35] and another R$110 [US $22] for the recording with their GoPro, which they provide," said the nurse, Rayza Gabrieli Dias Delfino.
According to Rayza, Maria was wearing a safety harness strapped around her abdomen but was not attached to a cord.
Image credits: EPTV/Wesley Almeida
In a statement, the Limeira City Hall called the tragedy “unacceptable” and stated that municipal authorities have been “adopting administrative measures and demanding action from the federal agencies responsible for the area.”
According to the municipal administration, responsibility for the inspection, maintenance, and access control of the Skeleton Bridge lies exclusively with the federal government, per G1.
Municipal authorities criticized the federal government for its lack of intervention in an area they say has “presented known risks” for years and “continues without the necessary protection measures.”
Image credits: dudz.rodrigueess
They called on public authorities at all levels to “definitively prevent access to the Skeleton Bridge” and put an end to illegal activities in the area.
In their statements to police, the three arrested instructors provided no explanation for the error.
Speaking in court, the men reportedly appeared disoriented and claimed not to recall whose responsibility it was to attach the rope.
They also claimed not to remember why a safety check had not been carried out before Maria was thrown off the bridge.
The workers arrested on suspicion of homicide have been identified as Maicon Fernandes Cintra, 42, Luis Felipe Feliciano Egoroff, 32, and Vitor de Freitas Gonçalves, 27.
Their lawyer, Rafael Gomes dos Santos, claimed, “They are in a state of shock. They cannot explain what happened because they have been doing this for years. Nothing like this has ever happened.”
Maria’s mother, Valdenia, paid tribute to her daughter after her funeral on Sunday.
She wrote online, “That d*mned rope took you away from me forever. My beloved daughter, you are gone and all that remains here is pain and longing. I will love you forever.”
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