Insider

Shady businessman tells Covid inquiry he met with Bolsonaro’s son

bolsonaro son knows shady executive
Danilo Trento, an executive of Precisa Medicamentos. Photo: Edilson Rodrigues/SF/CC-BY 4.0

The Senate’s Covid inquiry is currently questioning Danilo Trento, an executive at Precisa Medicamentos. The company is at the center of the Covaxin scandal, having brokered a USD 300 million vaccine deal with the Health Ministry that was laden with illegalities and has since been canceled by the government). Answering senators’ questions, he admitted to having met Senator Flávio Bolsonaro, the president’s eldest son, in public events.

The committee’s deputy chairman, Senator Randolfe Rodrigues, also produced text messages sent by Mr. Trento to his acquaintances in which he claims to know Congressman Eduardo Bolsonaro — the president’s third-eldest son.

Mr. Trento is not Flávio Bolsonaro’s only circumstantial link to Precisa Medicamentos. In October 2020, he introduced the company’s owner to the president of Brazil’s National Development Bank (BDNES). The meeting appears on the public schedule of BDNES head Gustavo Montezano.

Members of the committee believe the Bolsonaro family is involved in the Covaxin scandal by way of the president’s firstborn. Back in July, they began looking into shady activities by two lawyers linked to the senator — but the lead has not paid off as intended.