From the tatami to the DIAP:
the gym where only the money got a workout.
Several investors and a landlord filed a complaint against a businessman in the martial arts sector. They allege they handed over money to open and run gyms, but rents went unpaid and the funds were not returned. One of the complaints adds the retention of a high-end SUV financed by a third-party company, handed over on loan and not returned after notice. This page gathers only what appears in the complaints and the published reporting.
Presumption of innocence. The accused benefits from the presumption of innocence in Portugal. To date there is no Portuguese court ruling on the alleged facts. It is for the authorities to determine whether these are separate business disputes or a pattern of conduct.
Oops… I don’t think you’ll find what you’re after.
If you came looking for a gym to learn to fight or to unwind, you’ll be disappointed. What’s here is a good story, but it isn’t about a landlord who didn’t get paid. According to the complaints, the business was never the classes: it was the partners. Collecting deposits and expenses that never existed. Taking the rent money every month and pocketing it. Committing to the investment from day one knowing there’d be an eviction and the partner would never see a return. (And, yes, there’s also a criminal record in Brazil.) If you want to learn to fight, find another gym: the main source of income here was never the classes. If you want to understand how the con works, read on.
How to set up a gym without paying the rent
The wheel that turns by itself
How much does it cost to leave the partnership?
According to one contract: €5,000 for leaving early, plus €5,000 without notice, and €500 for each student poached over 12 months. The complainants speak of more than 100 students. And then there's the €20,000 entry fee, whose return is being claimed.
| Return of initial investment (claimed) | €20 000 |
| Early exit | €5 000 |
| Without notice | €5 000 |
| Students × €500 | {{ multa }} |
| Total | {{ total }} |
The record that actually exists
Of fights in public databases, we found no record. Of court cases, there are. The figures come from a public-database report (courts, TST, CNJ, Receita Federal) run on the CPF of the real person behind this story.
An old pattern? Between 2014 and 2016, former workers sued him several times in Paraná. The claims ranged from R$26,000 to R$37,000 each. In 2026, the TST certificate still says “debts listed”. Apparently, paying the people who work for him was already a challenge before the rents.
For the record: in the same query, the National Warrant Database (CNJ) shows no open warrants. Federal tax debts are at zero and there are no sanctions. Nor does any negative news appear in the Brazilian press.
| No. | Episode | Amount | What is alleged |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | Partnership in an operating gym | €20 000 | Money meant for rent and deposit, deposited into the accused's and his wife's accounts. The rents were apparently not paid. |
| 02 | Gym still under construction | ≈ €45 000 | Invested in build-out and equipment. Problems with rent payments and the destination of the money. |
| 03 | Transfer from an investor | €50 000 | Transferred in June to a personal account, with an agreement to repay in monthly instalments. The payments were apparently not made. |
| 04 | Rent owed to a landlord | > €20 000 | The owner is preparing measures to recover the property. Meanwhile, the gym stays open. |
| 05 | Retention of a vehicle | ≈ €530/mo | High-end SUV financed by a third-party company, unrelated to the gyms, and handed to the accused on loan. Not returned after a 24-hour notice; new complaint for breach of trust. |
Amounts alleged by the complainants, not yet confirmed in court. Contracts, transfer receipts and communications were submitted.
Exit penalties
In one contract, leaving the partnership early cost €5,000, plus another €5,000 if notice was not given. Poaching students was also forbidden for 12 months, with a €500 fine per student.
The complainants say more than 100 students were poached afterwards. If the clause were applied, that would amount to about €50,000.
The car that almost left in the wrong name
Before the vehicle episode, according to the complaint, there was an attempt to finance a high-end car using documents from another gym in Estoril, without the owners' knowledge. The attempt failed.
Financing later came through another route, a third-party company, unrelated to the dispute, and the car ended up handed to the accused on loan. Once the business relationship ended, the owners asked for it back. According to the complaint, the car never returned. → see the next section
The car that never came back to the garage
The second complaint, filed at the DIAP of Cascais on 10 September 2026, is not about rent. It is about a high-end SUV that a third-party company, unconnected to the gym dispute, financed, handed to the accused on loan and never saw return. According to the complaint, the accused was notified to return it within 24 hours, acknowledged receipt, asked for a meeting instead of handing it over, and left it at that.
| Category | High-end SUV · 2019 |
| Owner | A third-party company, unconnected to the gyms |
| Financing | Car loan with retention of title |
| Monthly payment | ≈ €530/mo |
| Who pays | The owning company (still ongoing) |
| Who uses it | The accused, for about 4 months |
| Status | Not returned after notice |
No plate, tax ID, address or contract numbers. This page publishes no personal data.
In the same 08/09 meeting, according to the complainants, the accused verbally confessed to not having paid the landlord the rents, despite having received the money for that purpose. The complaint argues this confession reinforces the 07/09 case.
- Make the accused a formal arguido (suspect).
- Search and seizure of the vehicle at the residence or the gym, returning it to the owner.
- Coercive measures for flight risk: aggravated identity and residence term, surrender of travel document and a ban on leaving the country.
- A formal request to AIMA about the accused's residence permit.
- Joinder with the 07/09 complaint (same person, same pattern).
- Final indictment for breach of trust (Art. 205 of the Penal Code).
The complaint alleges: debts to the tax authority and social security in Portugal; ongoing court cases in Brazil; a residence permit in Portugal about to expire; and no stable assets in the country: not even the car is his. It therefore argues there is a risk of the asset being hidden, sold or damaged, and of the accused leaving.
Breach of trust (Art. 205 of the Penal Code): receiving someone else's movable property under a title that does not transfer ownership and disposing of it as one's own. The complaint also considers the aggravated form and a continued offence (Art. 30, no. 2), arguing the episode follows the same pattern as the 07/09 complaint.
What is it to be a master?
An opinion piece. The facts are in the sections above.In martial arts, the first thing you teach is not a strike, it's respect. For your partner, for the tatami and for those who trust you.
So the question is: is being a master getting up at seven to teach, paying the rent and paying the people who work for you? Or is it having a conviction for aggravated robbery, a TST certificate that says “debts listed” and, according to former partners, a queue of partners waiting to get their money back?
A black belt is not an Instagram accessory. Those who wear one accept a code of conduct and answer to a federation. And those who advertise one without having earned it answer for false advertising. In either case, the belt protects no one from having to answer for themselves.
If someone is proposing a gym partnership to you right now, read this page to the end before you transfer a single euro.
This page will be updated only on the basis of official documents or published reporting. If you are named here and wish to present your side, use the form below. We will publish the right of reply.
Been through a similar situation?
Contact is confidential. We recommend you file a complaint directly with the authorities and keep contracts and receipts.