Covid inquiry arrests former Health Ministry official for perjury

Over its nearly 40 sessions, the Brazilian Senate’s Covid inquiry has seen multiple witnesses take the stand and blatantly lie under oath. Time and again, the committee’s chairman Senator Omar Aziz chose not to call for their arrest. This afternoon, however, he was not so indulgent with the Health Ministry’s former logistics director Roberto Dias, implicated in corruption scandals over vaccine purchases.

Mr. Aziz said Mr. Dias lied on multiple occasions, and ordered the Senate Police to take him into custody. “He’s been lying since this morning. I gave him all sorts of chances and pleaded [for him to speak the truth],” the senator said, justifying his decision.

To understand why Mr. Dias was arrested, one must fully appreciate the scandal in which he is involved. The former Health Ministry logistics director was accused by Luiz Paulo Dominguetti Pereira, a shady vaccine salesman, to have demanded a USD 1-per-dose bribe for a contract to purchase 400 million AstraZeneca vaccines. 

The proposition was allegedly made late in February, during a dinner at a shopping mall minutes away from Health Ministry headquarters.

Mr. Dias confirmed the meeting took place, but denied making any illicit proposals. He also told the committee that the meeting was accidental. However, audio recordings obtained from Mr. Pereira’s phone suggest otherwise. “Off the record, Dias is going to sign [the purchase order]. We’ll meet on Thursday to finalize...