The Lead Masks Case: Two Men, a Hilltop, and a Note No One Can Explain

2026-07-05 · Unexplained Deaths · 8 min read

On the afternoon of August 20, 1966, a boy climbed Morro do Vintem, the steep scrub covered hill that rises over the Brazilian city of Niteroi, across the bay from Rio de Janeiro, in order to fly a kite. Somewhere in the undergrowth he found two men lying side by side, partly hidden by the grass, not moving. He went back down and reported what he had seen. The terrain was so difficult that the police and firemen who tried to climb to the spot could not reach it that day. Only on the following day did anyone stand over the bodies.

The dead men were identified as Miguel Jose Viana, thirty-four, and Manoel Pereira da Cruz, thirty-two, electronics technicians from Campos dos Goytacazes, a town several hours to the north. Both were dressed in formal suits and new waterproof coats, although the day had been dry. Over the eyes of each man, resting on the face, lay a mask crudely cut from solid lead, the kind of gray metal sheet a technician might shape with tin snips. There were no wounds and no signs of a struggle. Money was still in their pockets.

Reader comments (0)