Supreme Court freezes assets of Lula’s communications minister

President Lula and his Communications Minister Juscelino Filho. Photo: Ricardo Stuckert/PR

A Supreme Court justice on Friday ordered the freezing of BRL 835,000 (USD 169,000) in assets belonging to Communications Minister Juscelino Filho, as part of a Federal Police investigation into bid-rigging, embezzlement, and money laundering, according to the news website Uol. The investigation is under judicial secrecy and the court has not made the documents available to the public.

In a press statement, the Federal Police said it executed 12 search and seizure warrants today in three cities in Maranhão, Mr. Filho’s home state. Luanna Rezende, mayor of the city of Vitorino Freire and Mr. Filho’s sister, was suspended from office by order of Justice Luís Roberto Barroso. The minister himself was not the target of the warrants.

While serving as a congressman, Mr. Filho allegedly funneled funds from the so-called “secret budget” to his sister’s government in Vitorino Freire, including money to pave a road that crosses farms belonging to his family. The investigation also involves embezzlement of funds from Codevasf, a state-owned company that supports sanitation, agricultural, and other development projects in 16 Brazilian states.

Codevasf said it is cooperating with authorities and that an employee was fired in August following an internal investigation by its own compliance department.

Communications Minister Juscelino Filho and his sister have not yet spoken about the operation on their social media accounts. Mr. Filho’s lawyers said in a statement that the investigation will show “there were no irregularities,” and that budget earmarks are “legitimate instruments.” President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva has not yet commented publicly on the matter.