Two days before the three year anniversary of Leandro Lo's death, the trial of his accused murderer, Henrique Velozo, has again been postponed.

After first being scheduled for May of this year, the jury trial started today. During the testimony of the first witness, chief inspector João Eduardo da Silva — the lead detective on the case — the inspector testified that there was no evidence that Lo had consumed marijuana on the day of the murder. Velozo's defense attorney, Cláudio Dalledone contested that Lo had been smoking something that smelled like marijuana inside the club.

This led to an argument in court between Dalledone and the prosecutor, João Calsavara.

Another argument ensued after Dalledone showed photos of Lo's friends to the inspector, insinuating that their size and apparent strength was intimidating, a question which the judge in the case seemed to find out of the expertise for the witness.

After dismissing several of Dalledone's questions and the courtroom argument between the defense attorney and prosecutor, the judge called a mistrial in the case. A new jury trial is now set to convene in mid-November.

The trial will rely heavily on two AI recreations of the events on the early morning of August 7, 2022. The prosecution's video shows Velozo provoking Lo and friends, prompting Lo to take Velozo to the ground. In the AI video, Lo lets Velozo up, then Velozo leaves the scene to retrieve a gun, with which he shoots his victim before kicking him in the head. According to the prosecution's animation, Velozo then visits a brothel where he spends several hours before turning himself in.

The defense's animation tells a different story. In the defense's recreation of events, Lo provokes the former police officer, takes him to the ground and chokes him unconscious before letting him up. According to the recreation and the testimony of Velozo, he — intimidated by Lo and his group of friends, draws and discharges his firearm.

When the trial resumes, the prosecution expects that Velozo will receive a 20-year sentence.

Three Years In The Making: The Leandro Lo Murder Case To Date

In the early hours of August 7, 2022, Leandro Lo was shot in the head at the Club Sírio nightclub in the south zone of São Paulo. His assailant was the then-lieutenant in the Polícia Militar, Henrique Velozo. Velozo, who was off-duty during the incident, turned himself in the following morning, and was held in protective custody, where he continued to receive his police salary for years.

In the Spring of 2025, Velozo was released from the police force after the public safety secretary released a written indictment of Velozo's actions following the shooting.

“The conduct of the Officer, duly proven by the robust evidentiary procedure, was aggravated by a sequence of acts revealing absolute disregard for functional duties and the values that govern the ethics of officership: he fled the scene without providing aid or contacting the competent authority, he hid for hours in a nocturnal environment, he attempted to influence a witness with the aim of constructing an alibi, and never reported the incident to the Corporation, as required by the precepts of the Disciplinary Regulations of the Military Police.”

Leandro Lo was an eight-time IBJJF world champion. He was 33-years old at the time of his death.