Murderer pretends to be a young woman killed in messages to deceive mother in Santa Catarina
A 21-year-old man is suspected of impersonating his dead girlfriend in text messages to the victim’s mother. José Gustavo Rabelo was arrested red-handed on August 10, 2026, in Sangão, Santa Catarina, after the body of Joviana Evelyn Iankovski, aged 19, was found. He would have used the young woman’s social networks to send justifications and try to convince the family that she was fine.
Delegate Murilo da Cunha confirmed that the person being investigated admitted to having sent the messages during his interrogation. Rabelo’s arrest was converted from flagrant to preventive after a custody hearing, reinforcing suspicions of feminicide.
The conversations, which took place between the early hours of August 7th and August 10th, aimed to simulate excuses for the young woman’s disappearance and reassure the mother, who was worried about her daughter’s absence at home.
Joviana’s family reported that she had gone out on August 6, mentioning that she was going to a bar with friends. Later, the student went to her boyfriend’s house, where she would spend the night.
Full coverage: Latest News (EN)
On August 7, at 3am, a message that appeared to be from Joviana was sent to her mother via José Gustavo’s Instagram. The text said: “Hi mom, it’s me. I left my charger at home, I’m out of battery. José and I got the day off today. I felt really sick because of the drinking.”
The Civil Police indicated that the student may have been murdered between the night of August 6th and the early morning of August 7th.
The lawyer for the person under investigation, in a statement, announced that he will act in a technical and responsible manner, seeking to prevent the pain of the families involved from becoming an object of public dispute.
Message content simulated malaise and lack of battery
The first communications were made in the early hours of August 7th, via José Gustavo’s Instagram profile. He pretended that Joviana was using his cell phone because she didn’t have her own charger.
One of the messages said: “José is going to go to his cousin’s early in the morning to get me a charger, then I’ll send him a message on Whatsapp.”
In other interactions on the same application, the profile stated that the young woman was seeking medical attention and a certificate to justify her absence from work on August 7th.
One of the sentences sent said: “I really felt really bad, I think I’ll go to the health center here and see if I can get a certificate, if not I’ll go to the hospital.”
Later, the messages continued to be sent to the mother, this time via the student’s own WhatsApp. The responses maintained the pattern of justifications for the disappearance.
See Also
Nostalgia on the rise: 5 classic portable consoles to play in 2026
Julián Álvarez is removed from Atlético de Madrid friendly amid his desire to leave for Barcelona
Star Wars reveal at D23: Ahsoka will have Clone Wars flashbacks with new costumes in season 2
On August 8, at 2:05 pm, the message “Hi mom, I got a certificate. I just had no battery on my cell phone […] I shouldn’t have drunk so much when I had to go to work” was sent.
A few minutes later, the profile sent declarations of affection and the promise to return: “Tomorrow night I’m going to talk. Okay? Sorry about that, I love you.”
On August 8, the mother received a message saying that Joviana would perhaps sleep at her boyfriend’s house again to go to work on August 10 from there. The mother responded with concern: “What do you mean, if all your things are here? Boots, all the materials, vest, you can’t go without all that. What happened that you don’t want to come home anymore?”
The victim’s sister warned the suspect about calling the police
On the morning of August 10, Lívia, the victim’s sister, sent a message to the suspect stating that she would call the police if Joviana did not appear.
On the same day, Lívia contacted the company where Joviana worked as a machine operator to check if her sister had presented a certificate. The information was denied by the establishment.
Lívia reported: “She noticed the difference since Friday, but she thought Jovi was just different, we never thought that would happen. On Monday she showed it to me and I also thought it was strange. So we decided to go after it, especially because on Sunday he, pretending to be her, said that she would come home on Monday to go to work and she didn’t show up. He had the cold blood to send a message to my mother pretending to be her, saying that he would come home, even after everything he did.”
The perpetrator of the crime surrendered to the police station on August 10, the date on which the body was located. He confessed to having murdered the biology student with a rear naked choke after a fight, locking her body in his own room and living with it throughout the weekend.
Details about the couple’s relationship for five months
Joviana Evelyn Iankovski and José Gustavo Rabelo de Souza had been in a relationship for around five months. They met at a mutual friend’s birthday party, according to the victim’s sister.
Lívia described the relationship as “troubled, with a lot of fights”. She added that “he was jealous, he didn’t let her wear certain clothes, he always manipulated her so she ended up feeling trapped in it. Our family knew about the jealousy and always advised her to break up; we showed that she wasn’t alone. We even deleted his number from her cell phone once, but he contacted her on his mother’s cell phone and they started talking again without us knowing.”
Joviana had ended her relationship with the suspect at the end of July 2026. On one occasion, he even chased her on a motorcycle.
The sister detailed: “They broke up on a Friday at the end of July. At night she went out to vent to a friend and came home saying that José had followed them on his motorbike.”
Lívia stated that she was not sure whether her sister had resumed her relationship with José Gustavo, but confirmed that Joviana continued to see him.
