If, in 2023, he experienced important upheavals, such as , seeing the position and , in 2024 the former governor of faced a routine of decisions that barely changed his legal situation, insufficient to make his dream of a new candidacy come true.
Cabral had it, but he saw processes being resumed. , already has another interrogation scheduled for 2025 and was denied a request for an old confession, which he now rejects, to be disregarded in criminal proceedings. He remains with the electronic ankle bracelet.
Cabral spent six years in pre-trial detention while responding to 37 criminal charges, 35 related to the developments of the . He has been free since December 2022, but remains with a liability of 33 criminal cases (32 from Lava Jato).
The sentences, combined, reached more than 400 years in prison. With the annulment of sentences and changes in dosimetry, they now reach 274 years.
The former governor is accused of having charged 5% bribes on major contracts during his administration (2007-2014). The investigations pointed to the name of oranges, in addition to being used, according to the Federal, for money laundering.
Initially, the . Two years after his arrest, . At the end of 2019, with the Federal Police, in May 2021. After leaving prison, .
The former governor’s main bet to get rid of most of the cases is the definitive conviction of Bretas by the CNJ (National Council of Justice).
The magistrate was removed in February 2023 on suspicion of irregularities in his performance. He denies it. The three administrative disciplinary processes are in the final stretch.
Two originate from plea bargains from lawyers who reported alleged irregular negotiations by the magistrate in the conduct of the cases.
The third refers to a complaint by the mayor of Rio de Janeiro, Eduardo Paes (PSD), of alleged political action in the 2018 election in favor of former judge Wilson Witzel, victorious in that dispute and removed from state government two years later.
Most of Cabral’s processes are paralyzed awaiting the CNJ’s decision to evaluate the requests for suspicion of Bretas made by the former governor’s defense.
Another bet by lawyer Patrícia Proetti, who defends him, is a complaint made to the STF (Supreme Federal Court), in which she questions Bretas’ competence in Operation Calicute, the first against the former governor in the Federal Court of Rio de Janeiro.
The argument is that the complaint includes among the accusations the transfer of R$2 million to the MDB, the former governor’s former party. For the lawyer, the inclusion of this fact should take the process to the Electoral Court.
A favorable decision could, in the defense’s assessment, have a cascading effect on the other sentences signed by Bretas. The request has been in the hands of Minister Gilmar Mendes for more than a year to be analyzed.
The judge removed from the 7th Federal Court of Rio de Janeiro is responsible for 2 of the 4 convictions already confirmed in the second instance. They are part of the list of collegiate decisions that prevent, due to the Clean Record Law, the declared desire to compete for a seat in the Chamber of Deputies.
Another conviction at the same stage is that handed down by former judge Sergio Moro, regarding the alleged payment of bribes by the construction company Andrade Gutierrez due to the works at Comperj (Rio de Janeiro Petrochemical Complex).
In November, Minister Dias Toffoli denied the annulment of the sentence based on dialogues between the former judge and the Curitiba Lava Jato prosecutors revealed by Vaza Jato and included in Operation Spoofing. The defense appealed the decision.
The fourth process at this stage is not related to Lava Jato. This is a conviction for embezzlement for the considered abusive use of state helicopters for trips to Mangaratiba, where he had a summer house. The defense is trying to have it annulled in the STJ (Superior Court of Justice).
While seeking favorable decisions in Brasília, some cases are returning to the Federal Court of Rio de Janeiro. These are criminal actions that had Bretas’ acts annulled, but were redistributed to other judges.
In October, the TRF-2 (Federal Regional Court of the 2nd Region) denied a request for the testimony in which Cabral confessed to monthly transfers of R$150,000 to former governor Luiz Fernando Pezão to be removed from the Operation Boca de Lobo files ( MDB) —already acquitted of the charge. He was interrogated again in May this year and denied the accusation.
“The process must continue to move forward, and cannot be subject to possible changes in the procedural strategy of the parties. The removal of valid procedural acts, carried out with respect to due legal process, is not justified”, decided the court.
Cabral has another interrogation scheduled for February, in the Operation Invoice Exposed criminal action, which deals with alleged health deviations. He was convicted in the process, but Bretas’ sentence was annulled so that the case could be handled by another judge.
The records already contain two statements by the former governor to the Court: one in which he denies and another in which he confesses to receiving bribes. He must deny the crime again.
In parallel to his judicial routine, the former governor has maintained political contacts. He declared that he had provided consultancy to candidates in this year’s elections.
On social media, Cabral has been alternating videos at the gym, with his recently started boxing classes and photos from his government period. It also gives tips on reading and streaming series. The publications have the support of a digital marketing specialist.
