The case concerns the sale of gifts received during the Presidency
The federal police have asked former president Jair Bolsonaro to break tax and banking secrecy as part of an investigation into an alleged misappropriation of jewelery and other luxury items given as gifts by Arab countries during official trips.
In the request sent to the Supreme Federal Court (STF), the PF also asks to collect the testimony of Bolsonaro, who is already ineligible until 2030 for abuse of political power in the 2022 elections and could see his situation in court complicate.
The request for violation of tax and banking secrecy comes in the wake of an operation which this Friday (11) evaded the search and seizure warrants at the addresses of Mauro Cid, Bolsonaro’s former assistant, and his father, General Mauro Cesar Lourena Cid; and Osmar Crivelatti and Frederick Wassef, adviser and lawyer respectively to the former president.
The PF suspects that this group organized the sale abroad of gifts received by Bolsonaro on official trips to Arab countries, such as watches and luxury jewellery. These items should have been incorporated into the state collection and cannot be treated as private property.
In a statement, Bolsonaro’s defense says it asked the Federal Court of Auditors (TCU) in mid-March 2023 that the luxury gifts remain in court custody until a final decision on their fate is made.
“President Bolsonaro reiterates that he has never appropriated or stolen any public good by making his bank transactions available to the judiciary,” reads the statement, signed by lawyers Paulo Amador da Cunha Bueno and Daniel Bettamio Tesser.
However, in authorizing the deal Friday, STF Minister Alexandre de Moraes said there were indications that the plan to sell the gifts was due to Bolsonaro’s “determination”.
“It has also been noted that the amounts obtained from these sales have been converted into cash and entered the personal assets of the former President of the Republic, through intermediaries and without using the formal banking system,” added Moraes.
In one of the episodes investigated, according to the PF, Mauro Cid sold two luxury watches in the United States – a Patek Philippe and a Rolex given as gifts by Bahrain and Saudi Arabia respectively – for US$ 68,000, with money deposited in a current account banking by Mauro César Lourena Cid.
The Federal Police investigation also points out that, in March 2023, after the Saudi jewelry scandal erupted in the press, people linked to Bolsonaro attempted to recover some objects sold abroad to return them to the Brazilian state, including the Rolex, which would be been recovered by Wassef.
“The undercover operation has allowed, until now, the Brazilian authorities not to be aware that the assets were sold abroad, in violation of the law, with the aim of illicit enrichment of former President Jair Bolsonaro, and subsequently recovered to be returned to the Brazilian state,” said the PF in the request for the operation this Friday.
Source: Terra
Rose James is a Gossipify movie and series reviewer known for her in-depth analysis and unique perspective on the latest releases. With a background in film studies, she provides engaging and informative reviews, and keeps readers up to date with industry trends and emerging talents.
