Judge accepts another charge against former President Lula
Former President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva
Federal Judge Sergio Moro accepted another charge against former President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva submitted by the task force of Operation Car Wash, making it Lula's fifth. He is facing three charges at federal level in Brasília—one for his alleged participation in buying the silence of Petrobras ex-director Nestor Cerveró, another in Operation Zealots for the crimes of influence peddling, money laundering, and criminal organization, and a third for the embezzlement of funds from Brazil's Social Development Bank. In his fourth case, tried by Sergio Moro, he is being accused of pocketing $1.1 million from construction giant Odebrecht.
According to the report, accepted Wednesday (Dec. 19), Lula took part in a scheme to embezzle 2% to 3% of the amounts from deals signed between Odebrecht and Petrobras. Over $22 million is alleged to have been siphoned.
Investigators believe that one of the ways Lula could receive the bribes was through the purchase and maintenance of the Lula Institute headquarters, in São Paulo, by construction firm Norberto Odebrecht. The $3.6 million contract is supposed to have been forged through the mediation of erstwhile Minister Antonio Palocci and his adviser Branislav Kontic—both of them also facing charges.
The report further states that the penthouse next to Lula's in São Bernardo do Campo was bought by Odebrecht and given to the ex-president. According to the probes, Glaucos da Costamarques, a relative of José Carlos Bumlai, rancher and Lula's friend, acted as a middleman in the scheme.
Agência Brasil failed to reach Lula's defense as of the publication of this article.
Translated by Fabrício Ferreira
Fonte: Judge accepts another charge against former President Lula
