STF convicts three PL deputies for embezzling amendments in Maranhão

The First Panel of Brazil's Supreme Federal Court convicted three Liberal Party deputies on Tuesday (17) for passive corruption involving the diversion of parliamentary amendments to Maranhão. The defendants were accused of demanding a 25% kickback on funds sent to municipalities. This marks the STF's first conviction for such a crime.

STF First Panel convicts PL deputies in amendments scheme A First Panel of Brazil's Supreme Federal Court formed a majority to convict deputies Josimar Maranhãozinho (PL-MA), Pastor Gil (PL-MA), and suplente Bosco Costa (PL-SE) for passive corruption. Relator Justice Cristiano Zanin was followed by Alexandre de Moraes, Cármen Lúcia, and Flávio Dino. The Attorney General's Office (PGR) charged a 2019-2021 scheme to extort municipalities like São José de Ribamar (MA), demanding 25% kickbacks on amendments totaling over R$1.6 million. Funds were diverted through shell company contracts, with intermediaries like loan shark Josival Cavalcanti da Silva (Pacovan) as collectors. Other convicts include João Batista Magalhães, Adones Gomes Martins, Abraão Nunes Martins Neto, and Antônio José Silva Rocha, all in semi-open regime. Thalles Andrade Costa was acquitted. Sentences vary: Josimar Maranhãozinho got 6 years and 5 months imprisonment plus 300 fine days; Pastor Gil, 5 years and 6 months; Bosco Costa, 5 years. All must pay R$1.667 million in collective moral damages and are ineligible. The panel rejected organized crime charges due to insufficient proof of structure for other offenses. Zanin cited evidence like dialogues, messages, financial receipts, and spreadsheets. “The records also prove the deputies themselves took the lead in the requests,” said Moraes. Cármen Lúcia noted the “criminal circle” where health funds returned to participants. Defenses claimed lack of evidence: Maranhãozinho's lawyer called accusations “mere deductions”; Gil's, proof tampering; Costa's, no solicitation acts. Congress must decide on sentence compatibility with mandates.

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Dramatic illustration of Brazil's CPI rejecting a report against STF justices in a 6-4 Senate vote.
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Brazil's organized crime CPI rejects report against STF justices

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Brazil's Parliamentary Commission of Inquiry (CPI) on Organized Crime rejected Senator Alessandro Vieira's (MDB-SE) final report on Tuesday (April 14), which proposed indicting three Supreme Federal Court (STF) justices and the Attorney General. The report was defeated 6-4 after changes in the commission's composition. The substitutions favored government-aligned members, swaying the vote outcome.

The First Panel of the Supreme Federal Court begins on Tuesday (24) the trial of those accused of ordering the murder of councilwoman Marielle Franco and driver Anderson Gomes, which occurred on March 14, 2018, in Rio de Janeiro. The process, nearly eight years after the crime, involves figures such as the Brazão brothers and former Civil Police chief Rivaldo Barbosa. Family members express hope that the verdict will mark a milestone for justice and human rights in Brazil.

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Brazil's Supreme Federal Court (STF) First Panel will resume on Tuesday (April 28) the judgment on whether pastor Silas Malafaia will be made a defendant for slander and insult against the Army High Command. Malafaia's defense requested a postponement, arguing the panel is incomplete with only four justices. The case stems from criticisms Malafaia made during a rally in April 2025 on Avenida Paulista.

Centrist leaders in Brazil's lower house want to avoid voting on a bill regulating extra perks and supersalaries for public servants unless President Lula's government engages directly. The Supreme Federal Court suspended these benefits and ordered Congress to legislate within 60 days, but the deadline is deemed too short in an election year. The STF plenary is judging the decisions this week.

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Minister Dias Toffoli stepped down from the Master case relatoria at the STF after a closed meeting with other ministers, convened by President Edson Fachin due to a Police Federal report arguing his suspicion. The Court issued a joint note stating no impediment exists, and the relatoria was reassigned to André Mendonça. Parties and police delegates' associations reacted in defense of judicial institutionalism.

STF Minister André Mendonça reduced the secrecy level of the Banco Master fraud inquiry on Thursday (19), after taking over from Dias Toffoli. The decision grants the Federal Police broader access to seized materials and authorizes ordinary procedures, such as depositions. This reverses prior restrictions set by Toffoli.

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Brazil's Workers' Party (PT) will discuss a political manifesto at its national meeting in Brasília this weekend, proposing milder judiciary reforms. The initial draft referenced 'promiscuity between judges and businessmen', now shifted to 'self-correction mechanisms'. This adjustment comes amid the Banco Master scandal implicating Supreme Federal Court (STF) justices.

 

 

 

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