A British holidaymaker whose Brazilian fiancée was gunned down in a hotel lobby amid a horrific robbery gone wrong has told how he desperately tried to shield her from the oncoming bullets and that he may now never walk again.
Philip Donald Eric Gray, 38, has been told by doctors that he could be left disabled after a bullet hit his spine, while his 46-year-old girlfriend Ruth Mary Silva de Oliveira Ribeiro was killed on the spot.
Speaking of the horrific ordeal, he said: ‘(The robber) got a shot off and missed so he fired a second shot and missed, and he then took aim at Mary and I dived in front of her. I grabbed Mary and wrapped my arms around her to protect her.
‘I know that I put my life on the line but I wanted to protect her because I loved her.’
The couple were seen on CCTV checking out of their beachside hotel in Praia do Cumbuco, Brazil, on Monday afternoon, and were set to travel to Mary’s hometown of Macapa, where they planned to wed.
But their dream was cruelly shattered when a would-be robber burst into the hotel lobby and demanded they hand over the cash they had in a bag.
Terrifying footage shows how the crash-helmeted crook grabbed Brazilian national Mary, who is a mother of three and has a young grandson, and tried to pull her away, prompting Philip to dive into action.
The trio became locked in a bitter struggle which spilt out into the hotel gardens where the robber pulled out a gun and fired a flurry of shots at his victims.
Philip sustained three gunshot wounds, but was forced to watch as his girlfriend lay dying mere feet away as their assailant fled.
Philip Donald Eric Gray, 38, has been told by doctors that he could be left disabled after a bullet hit his spine, while his 46-year-old girlfriend Ruth Mary Silva de Oliveira Ribeiro was killed on the spot
Philip and Mary are seen posing in a restaurant in this image taken from social media
The pair were planning to get married in Mary’s hometown before the heinous shooting
Terrifying CCTV footage shows how the crook demanded their cash before grabbing the Brazilian national and trying to pull her away
Philip is now in hospital awaiting surgery, but there are fears he could be left disabled by the attack.
Local media reported that the couple was carrying the equivalent of more than £4,000 in cash at the time of the robbery, adding that the attacker arrived at the location asking for the couple.
This suggests the robber knew his victims in advance or had somehow received information they would be carrying large sums of money, but no further information has yet been revealed.
Speaking about the rumours that the gunman appeared to know that he had money Philip said: ‘I think we were set up because if you look at the receptionist she hardly moved, if she was scared she too would have helped.’
He added that the robber ultimately made off with just £130 and a carry-on suitcase.
CCTV showed how the receptionist appeared to stand behind the counter and watch as the attack unfolded, before later running out of the lobby pulling a child by the hand. It is unclear whether the receptionist was in any way implicated.
‘We were checking out and I was finalising our bill at the counter and we were about to leave and get an Uber at 4pm when this man appears out of no where and goes to my fiancée Mary and he was screaming in English ”give me the bag, give me the bag”,’ Philip recounted.
‘I grabbed him and forced him off of us and he then saw my bag, tried to come after me but I grabbed him and somehow punched him and I said ”no, f-off, go away”.’
The gunman then pulled out a pistol and fired a volley of shots, injuring Sam and killing his fiancée.
‘I now can’t feel my legs,’ Sam said. ‘I am still awaiting for an operation. I’m not sure what will happen, all I know is today her body is being transported back to Macapa and I never got to say goodbye.’
Mary, a mature student studying psychoanalysis, leaves behind three children and a three-year-old grandson.
Her twin daughter, Clara Thalia, said that Mary and Philip had been enjoying travelling together when their idyllic life was ripped apart.
The British tourist was staying at a beachside guesthouse in Praia do Cumbuco, Ceara State, with his Brazilian partner when the pair were set upon by a violent robber
Mary and Philip are seen together with horses on holiday
Mary, a mature student studying psychoanalysis, leaves behind three children and a three-year-old grandson
‘It was a very beautiful love, I was very happy to see my mother being loved like that, you know, living such a beautiful love story…
‘After the fatality happened, my (soon-to-be) stepfather, even though he was shot, even though he was bleeding a lot, he managed to make a video call to my brother.
‘My brother spoke English to him, and he said he had been shot.’
Clara said her family thought Philip was making a ‘bad joke’, but they soon realised the situation was serious.
She continued: ‘He was very careful not to expose how (Mary) was at the time, but he turned his arm and I saw her lying on the ground, her legs.
‘And the moment I saw her legs, something told me that she would not come home alive.’
The bullet that killed Mary reportedly passed through her arm and lodged itself in her body cavity.
Philip meanwhile sustained three wounds, and one bullet hit him in the spine.
Mary is seen alongside one of her twin daughters, Clara, who said of her mother and Philip’s relationship: ‘It was a very beautiful love, I was very happy to see my mother being loved like that, you know, living such a beautiful love story’
The bullet that killed Mary reportedly passed through her arm and lodged itself in her body cavity
The unidentified attacker, sporting a motorbike crash helmet, approached the pair at hotel reception at just before 4pm
The British tourist was staying at a beachside guesthouse Ceara State, with his Brazilian partner when the pair were set upon by a violent robber
Clara said: ‘There is a risk that my stepfather will become paraplegic.’
She added that they initially avoided telling him Mary had died because he was in a lot of pain from his injuries, but that he had not stopped crying since learning of his girlfriend’s fate.
Philip said he and Mary had been together for almost six years after meeting online.
‘She came to London two years ago and our relationship blossomed from there. I had been to Brazil before with her last year,’ he said.
‘It’s impacted not only me and my family very badly but also her family too because we were planning on getting married. I’ve not stopped crying since Monday. I only found out from my mum yesterday on the phone that she passed away.’
Police are now hunting the gunman and his motorbike-driving accomplice who helped him escape the scene.
Brazil’s Secretary of Public Security and Social Defence stated that four different murder squads are investigating the killing.
A FCDO Spokesperson told MailOnline: ‘We are assisting the family of a British man who has been hospitalised in Brazil and are in contact with the local authorities.’
