Ciro Nogueira says he did not transfer land sold to the Refit fund company

Senator Ciro Nogueira (PP-PI) stated in an interview with a local broadcaster, in Piauí, this Thursday, 21st, that the land sold by his family’s company to a fuel distributor was not formally transferred to the new owner. According to the parliamentarian, the buyer, identified by the Federal Police as belonging to the Refit conglomerate, “did not pay until the end”.

The statement contradicts information taken by the Federal Police to the Federal Supreme Court (STF) and the purchase and sale contract signed by the senator’s brother.

The document, dated August 2024, established that an area of ​​40 hectares in Teresina (PI) would be sold by Ciro Nogueira Agropecuária e Imóveis LTDA to Athena Real Estate LTDA for R$14.2 million.

When contacted, Ciro Nogueira’s advisor stated that the contract provides for three installments of an initial R$2.5 million and then 21 monthly installments of R$300,000 starting in February 2025. Within this schedule, says the advisor, the payment period has not yet ended, which is why the deal has not been finalized. Asked about the discrepancy between the information presented by the senator and the accounting found by the PF that indicates the payment of the entire R$ 14.2 million to Ciro’s family company, the press office has not yet responded.

As Estadão revealed, the PF identified the payment made to the company named after the senator, although it only officially belongs to his family.

In an interview with TV Clube, from Piauí, Ciro Nogueira reiterated that he is not a partner in the company, but that the contract for the sale of land “in one of the most valued areas of Teresina” was legal.

“This is a company that everyone in Piauí knows is one of the biggest companies in the state of Piauí, it has been on the market for 50 years, it belongs to my mother. And it was contacted, it went to sell the property… The company itself did not pay until the end, so it has not been transferred until now. A more than legal commercial transaction. You will see that there is no illegality”, he stated.

The contract has a divergence of values. He established that the negotiation would be for R$14.2 million, paid in three installments of R$2.5 million each, starting in November 2024. And the remainder in 21 installments of R$300 thousand. This division totals R$13.8 million.

Athena was appointed by the PF as the main beneficiary of the EUV Gladiator fund, linked to the Refit group owned by businessman Ricardo Magro, investigated in Operation Sem Refino.

The payment to Ciro Nogueira’s family company will still be investigated further. A former advisor of his was even the target of search and seizure, but the senator was not the target of Sem Refino. At the beginning of the month, the parliamentarian was searched and seized as part of Compliance Zero, which investigates fraud at Banco Master.

Although this fund formally belongs to the company Eurovest, the PF points out in the investigation that it is actually a structure used by Ricardo Magro to shield assets and hide assets.

Athena, which purchased the land from Ciro’s family, would be an arm of Ricardo Magro’s group to protect assets through the purchase of properties.

The Refit group, the former Manguinhos Refinery, operates in the fuel sector and is suspected of corruption and tax evasion. According to the Federal Revenue Service, Ricardo Magro is the largest tax debtor in Brazil, with debts exceeding R$26 billion.

On Wednesday, Ciro Nogueira sent a note in which he declared the purchase and sale as completed.

“We clarify that the company that acquired the land was looking for an area of ​​more than 40 hectares with the purpose of building a fuel distribution company. The value mentioned by the reporter refers to the sale of this area, located in a highly valued location in Teresina, whose sale was regularly and fully declared with the competent bodies at values ​​consistent with the market”, he claimed.