The minister of the (Supreme Court), voted on Monday (28) against the decision of the minister who decreed the arrest of the former president of Mello.
The divergence opened by Mendonça, however, has already been won, as six ministers before him voted to maintain the arrest.
For Mendonça, the appeal presented by Collor’s defense questioning the dosimetry of the penalty for passive corruption could not be considered delaying, that is, used to avoid serving the penalty.
According to him, it is “minimum judicial guarantees, to which all persons must be entitled, among which to be able to appeal to convictions (and the penalties),” he says in the vote.
The minister points out that the trial against Collor occurred in “unique instance”, as it began in the Supreme itself. The embargoes against the decision, according to Mendonça, allowed a “new look at non -unanimous points”.
As a consequence, he argues, the decision to arrest him should be revoked so that he could wait for the trial in freedom.
On Friday (25), Minister Gilmar Mendes had asked to bring the case to the physical plenary because of its importance and repercussion.
Without forecast of return of the trial, however, Gilmar retreated from the request. The Supreme has no sessions scheduled for this week. The court reached out the May 1 holiday, and ministers take time to fulfill agendas outside Brasilia.
Even with the trial suspended on Friday (25), six court ministers presented their votes in advance and secured a majority to maintain Collor’s arrest.
In addition to Moraes, they were favorable to Flávio Dino, Edson Fachin, Luis Roberto Barroso, Cármen Lúcia and Dias Toffoli. Minister Cristiano Zanin declared himself prevented from judging the case for acting as a lawyer in proceedings of Operation Lava Jato.
Collor was arrested at dawn on Friday (25) in (AL). He was arrested by federal police as he tried to board for Brasilia. According to the defense, he would travel to surrender to the authorities.
The former president is the penalty of eight years and ten months in prison.
He was accused of receiving bribes from a scheme from BR Distribuidora, a subsidiary company of Petrobras, in a criminal action derived from. Proofs found in the donor’s office in addition to testimonials of employees of the operation, were presented as evidence in the action.
The complaint was filed by the PGR (Attorney General of the Republic) in August 2015. According to the conviction, to ensure the signing of state-owned contracts with the construction company UTC, the former president influenced the command and boards of the company BR Distribuidora from 2010 to 2014, which encompasses the petist management of Lula and Dilma Rousseff. In return, Collor would have received $ 20 million.
The defense had denied a first appeal against the conviction in November 2024. By 6 votes to 4, the ministers refused the lawyers’ request to reduce the penalty for passive corruption, which would make Collor serve the semi -open sentence.
Even with the rejection of the appeal, the defense presented new embargoes to the Supreme on the same theme. Moraes considered the new request as a delayed and decided to terminate the action, with the beginning of the execution of the sentence.
Collor’s defense asked the Supreme Court that the former president be transferred to house arrest for being elderly (75 years) and treatment for Parkinson’s diseases, severe sleep apnea and bipolar affective disorder.
Lawyer Marcelo Bessa, defender of the former president, argued that Collor could not be arrested before the process (res judicata). Although Moraes has denied the last appeal of the defense, the ministers still decide whether to endorse the injunction of the colleague.
“In addition to Fernando Collor’s advanced age and being affected by serious comorbidities […]the absence of any risk of criminal reiteration, as well as the lack of hazardous order for public or economic order, must be observed, “says the lawyer.
Moraes expects a position by the Attorney General, Paulo Gonet, to decide whether to benefit. Contrary to his defense, the former president said in a custody hearing on Friday that he has no disease or uses continuous drugs.
