The Fifth Panel of the (Superior Court of Justice) intends to judge this Tuesday (17) a series of actions related to those involving characters such as former ministers and the former governor of Rio.
It is planned to analyze 16 processes under the rapporteur of Minister Daniela Teixeira. In previous judgments about the operation, she has already spoken out in favor of annulling Lava Jato cases.
At the time, the judge pointed out that the court must follow the understanding of the minister of the (Supreme Federal Court), who made all the evidence arising from Odebrecht’s accusation useless, at the risk of being targeted by the CNJ (National Council of Justice).
Those involved in Lava Jato in processes related to dialogues obtained by Operation Spoofing, which investigated those responsible for hacking and leaking conversations from prosecutors.
The set of cases on the agenda at the STJ is treated internally as an attempt to resolve the cases still pending on Lava Jato in court.
In addition to Daniela Teixeira, the group includes ministers Reynaldo Soares da Fonseca, Ribeiro Dantas, Joel Ilan Paciornik and Messod Azulay Neto. The Fifth Panel is responsible for cases in the criminal area of the court.
Of the 16 cases, 3 deal with requests made by the defense of José Dirceu, who was chief minister of the Civil House in Lula’s first term () and ended up in prison due to convictions in the Mensalão and Lava Jato cases.
Dirceu is trying to extinguish once and for all cases against him that are still in progress. In one of the cases, he asks that the statute of limitations be recognized in an action that accused him of money laundering.
In another, he tries to archive an action in which he was acquitted in the first instance in Curitiba, but there is an appeal from the Federal Public Ministry. In this case, he is accused of laundering bribes from construction companies UTC and Engevix.
When contacted, Dirceu’s lawyer, Roberto Podval, said he would not comment until the trial.
In the Supreme Court, Dirceu already won a victory in October, when the former judge and now senator (União Brasil) against the former minister.
He had been convicted by the then judge in two cases, in 2016 and 2017. The sentences totaled 34 years in prison (one for 23 years, the other for 11). The PGR (Attorney General’s Office) appealed the decision, which must be judged by the Second Panel of the STF.
In Palocci’s case to be judged this Tuesday at the STJ, the defense is trying to have part of his assets that were blocked by the courts — worth R$35 million — to be released. When contacted, the former minister’s defense did not speak out.
In April, the Federal Court had already suspended the blockade of six properties and five vehicles belonging to the former minister and his company, Projeto Consultoria, .
Palocci spent more than two years in prison in Paraná as part of Lava Jato criminal actions. He was sentenced in 2017 for passive and money laundering by Moro to more than 12 years in prison. The sentence, however, was annulled by the STJ in 2021.
Sérgio Cabral’s action, which will be analyzed by the STJ, concerns the revocation of the use of an electronic ankle bracelet by the former governor of Rio.
“Minister Daniela Teixeira granted the removal of the ankle bracelet monocratically and the MPF appealed. The appeal will be judged”, says Cabral’s lawyer, Patrícia Proetti.
In addition to these processes, demands from other known Lava Jato defendants will also be analyzed, such as money changer Nelma Kodama, lobbyist Julio Camargo and financial operator Adir Assad.
There are also other former executives and operators who were targets of the operation. There are requests for sentence progression and transfer of actions that are still ongoing in Paraná to the Federal Court in other states.
Some of the authors of the 16 actions have argued that former judge Moro and judge Gabriela Hardt, who worked at the 13th Federal Court of Curitiba, acted in a partial manner and, therefore, their cases must be annulled.
The session that can judge Lava Jato cases is scheduled to start at 1 pm this Tuesday. There must be oral arguments — when lawyers defend their clients in front of magistrates — in most cases at trial.
