Bolsonaro used presidential plane to steal jewelry, says PF

An investigation by the PF (Federal Police) indicates that then-President Jair Bolsonaro (PL) used the presidential plane to leave Brazil with jewelry received as gifts from foreign governments to the United States, where it was sold. The information is contained in the final report sent to the STF (Supreme Federal Court), whose confidentiality was lifted this Monday (8.Jul.2024), by decision of Minister Alexandre de Moraes. Here is the full report (PDF – 138 kB).

O mode of operation was repeated 3 times, according to the corporation. On December 31, 2022, 2 sculptures were taken, one in the shape of a boat and the other, of a tree. Both were gifts received by Bolsonaro in November 2021 during official engagements with representatives of Saudi Arabia and the Kingdom of Bahrain.

The objects were kept by General Mauro Cesar Lourena Cid in his home in Miami, Florida (USA). He and his son, Bolsonaro’s then aide-de-camp, Lieutenant Colonel Mauro Cesar Barbosa Cid, then tried to sell them in specialized stores, but had difficulties, as they were not completely made of gold, as they had expected.

Then, according to the PF, the lieutenant colonel reported to Bolsonaro’s advisor Marcelo Camara that the items would return to Brazil with his father.

Another kit received by the then Minister of Mines and Energy, Bento Albuquerque, from Saudi Arabian authorities in October 2021, was taken to the US during an official presidential trip on December 30, 2022. It contained men’s items from the luxury brand Chopard, including a pen, ring, pair of cufflinks, Arabic rosary and watch.

The orderly then forwarded the material to be sold by the company Fortuna Auction, in New York (USA).

On February 8, 2023, the kit was put up for auction, but was not sold. After the failed attempt to sell it, Cid, Marcelo Camara and Bolsonaro’s advisor Osmar Crivelatti organized the rescue of the goods, which were sent to Orlando, Florida, where the former president was living.

The items were only returned to the Brazilian State on March 23, 2023, after a decision by the TCU (Federal Court of Auditors). They were delivered to a Caixa Econômica Federal branch in Brasília.

According to the PF, the same scheme was carried out with the kit containing a ring, cufflinks, an Islamic rosary and a white gold Rolex luxury brand watch, delivered to the then president during an official visit to Saudi Arabia in October 2019.

The information is contained in the report that served as the basis for the indictment of the former president and 11 other people in the investigation that is looking into the illegal sale of Saudi Arabian jewelry abroad.

WHAT THOSE QUOTED SAY

Marcelo Chamber and Marcelo da Silva Vieira:

In a statement, the defense of Colonel Marcelo Costa Câmara and Marcelo da Silva Vieira, made by the same lawyer, says that they are “victims of the collateral effect” of an “attempt to persecute other people”, and that it identified “inconsistencies” and “technical errors” in the records.

Furthermore, all the actions of the colonel as an advisor to Bolsonaro and the head of GADH (Deputy Office of Historical Documentation), respectively, were “carried out with the aim of maintaining total care and diligence with said documents, in accordance with the legislation in force, making their inclusion in this investigation incomprehensible.”

O Poder360 seeks the defense of the other defendants. The space is open.

UNDERSTAND THE CASE

The investigation, under the reporting of Minister Alexandre de Moraes at the Supreme Court, investigates the diversion of 3 luxurious gift kits intended for then-President Bolsonaro by foreign governments.

• kit 1: a tree sculpture and a boat sculpture;
• kit 2: jewelry set consisting of cufflinks, a rosary, ring and watch made of rose gold;
• kit 3: jewelry set consisting of a Rolex watch, a pen from the luxury brand Chopard, a pair of cufflinks, a ring and an Arabic rosary.

The case arose after the TCU (Federal Court of Auditors) determined in 2016 that all assets received by heads of the Executive Branch must be incorporated into the assets of the Union. The exception is assets of a highly personal nature or for personal consumption – such as food, t-shirts, perfumes, caps, among others.

According to a report by the Federal Police, the items were sold to jewelry stores in the United States by allies of the former president. The investigation states that the embezzlement or attempted embezzlement totaled approximately R$6.8 million.

In total, Bolsonaro and 11 other people were indicted for the scheme. Read below who they are and what their crimes are:

• Jair Bolsonaro, former President of the Republic (criminal association, money laundering and appropriation of public assets);
• Fabio Wajngarten, lawyer for the former president (criminal association, money laundering);
• Mauro Cesar Barbosa Cid, lieutenant colonel and former aide-de-camp to the former president (criminal association, money laundering and appropriation of public assets);
• Mauro Cesar Lorena Cid, general and father of Mauro Cid (criminal association and money laundering);
• Frederick Wassef, lawyer (criminal association and money laundering);
• Bento Albuquerque, former Minister of Mines and Energy (criminal association and appropriation of public assets);
• Marcos Andre dos Santos Soeiro, former advisor to Bento Albuquerque (criminal association and appropriation of public assets);
• Julio Cesar Vieira Gomes, former Secretary of the Federal Revenue Service (criminal association, money laundering, appropriation of public assets and administrative advocacy);
• Marcelo Silva Vieira, former head of the Historical Documentation Office of the Presidency of the Republic (criminal association, money laundering and appropriation of public assets);
• Jose Roberto Bueno Junior, former chief of staff of the Ministry of Mines and Energy (criminal association, money laundering and appropriation of public assets);
• Osmar Crivelati, Bolsonaro’s advisor (criminal association and money laundering);
• Marcelo Costa Chamber, former advisor to Bolsonaro (money laundering).

What are the next steps?

1. The PGR will analyze the evidence collected by the PF within 15 days and decide whether to archive the case, request further investigations or charge those involved – the list of crimes may change;
2. If the PGR decides to report those involved, the complaint will be analyzed by the STF;
3. The Supreme Court can then decide whether to accept the complaint or to close the case. If it chooses to accept the complaint, those involved will become defendants and will face criminal charges – and may be convicted or acquitted. The Supreme Court can also send the case to the 1st Instance.