STF resumes trial that could convict deputies for corruption in amendments
The Federal Supreme Court (STF) resumes this Tuesday the trial of the first criminal action that could result in the conviction of federal deputies for corruption related to parliamentary amendments. The First Panel of the Court analyzes the case involving deputies Josimar Maranhãozinho (PL-MA), Pastor Gil (PL-MA) and Bosco Costa (PL-SE), accused of being part of a bribery scheme in exchange for the allocation of budget resources.
The vote of the rapporteur, minister Cristiano Zanin, opens the new stage of the analysis. After him, ministers Alexandre de Moraes, Cármen Lúcia and Flávio Dino, president of the collegiate, should speak. Ministers interviewed by GLOBO state that the expectation is that the trial will be concluded during this Tuesday’s session.
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The complaint was filed by the Attorney General’s Office (PGR) and claims that, between January and August 2020, parliamentarians asked a mayor from the interior of Maranhão to pay R$1.7 million in bribes in exchange for sending around R$6.7 million in parliamentary amendments to the municipality. According to the accusation, the group had structured a scheme to “commercialize” amendments.
The PGR states that the criminal organization would be led by Josimar Maranhãozinho and points to exchanges of messages between those investigated about the directing of resources to municipalities. In one of the conversations cited in the complaint, Pastor Gil asks which cities should receive amendments, and Josimar responds that he had allocated R$1.048 million to São José de Ribamar. The defenses deny irregularities.
In the first sessions of the trial, held last week, deputy attorney general Paulo Vasconcelos Jacobina defended the conviction of the parliamentarians, stating that the conduct investigated was “highly serious”.
The PGR representative highlighted, for example, that the activities of the investigated group were not restricted to the city hall of São José de Ribamar — the specific case under analysis. According to him, the “enticement and collection” of amounts to release amendments “in different municipalities” led to the opening of other investigations underway in the Court.
Also according to the Federal Public Ministry, the criminal organization would be led by Josimar Maranhãozinho, a position that would be proven by exchanges of messages between him and the other accused deputies regarding the direction of amendments. In December 2019, for example, Pastor Gil consulted Josimar about which municipalities should receive amendments. “I gave 1,048,000 to São José de Ribamar”, was the answer.
In December 2021, GLOBO showed excerpts from videos recorded in a controlled action by the Federal Police in which deputy Josimar Maranhãozinho hands over a box of money to an ally. The images were taken as part of Operation Descalabro, within a second investigation in which Maranhãozinho is investigated, also for embezzlement of public resources.
