André Mendonça, Gilmar Mendes, Luiz Fux and Nunes Marques diverged from the rapporteur; Moraes was accompanied by Flávio Dino, Edson Fachin, Roberto Barroso, Carmen Lúcia and Dias Toffoli
The (Supreme Federal Court) on Monday (28.ab.2025) 6-4 Keep the arrest of former President Fernando Collor-consistent with 8 years and 10 months in prison for crimes of passive corruption, money laundering and criminal association.
Here’s the score:
- 6 votes to reject the appeal and maintain prison – Alexandre de Moraes (Rapporteur), Flávio Dino, Edson Fachin, Roberto Barroso (President of the Court), Cármen Lúcia and Dias Toffoli;
- 4 votes to recognize the appeal and revoke the arrest – André Mendonça (read the vote – PDF – 210 kb), Gilmar Mendes (from the vote – PDF – 147 kb), Luiz Fux and Nunes Marques ( – 156 kb); and
- 1 – Cristiano Zanin (for acting as a lawyer in processes of Operation Lava Jato before reaching the Supreme).
DIVERGENCE
Mendonça to recognize the defense’s appeal to review the dosimetry of the penalties.
He argued that 4 ministers voted in favor of Collor’s appeal to set his sentence in 4 years in prison, not 8 years and 10 months, as in the sentence, is sufficient to admit the new appeal.
The lawyers tried to reduce the penalty based on the divergence between the votes of the ministers. They sought to prevail the minor penalty defended by Mendonça, Nunes Marques, Toffoli and Gilmar.
Moraes stated that the defense only repeated arguments already rejected in an attempt to delay the execution of the sentence. Mendonça, however, stated that the appeal is part of the “Right to broad defense”.
COLLOR
Former President Fernando Collor, 75, is arrested in a special wing of the Men’s Penitentiary Baldomero Cavalcanti, in Maceió (AL) since Friday (25.abr). After a custody hearing, Moraes ordered him to be sent to the prison unit to start serving the sentence.
Collor awaits a decision on a humanitarian household arrest request, as he is 75 years old and serious comorbidities such as Parkinson, severe sleep apnea and bipolar affective disorder.
He was convicted in 2023 for corruption in a lawsuit that derived from Operation Lava Jato and reported in 2015 by the PGR (Attorney General’s Office) to the STF, which began a criminal action against the then senator by Alagoas.
The complaint accused Collor of receiving a bribe of R $ 20 million to favor UTC Engenharia in contracts with BR Distribuidora (today Vibra Energia), a subsidiary of Petrobras. He would have influenced the nominations to the fuel distributor’s board. Payments were made from 2010 to 2014.
Collor left Congress in 2022, when he was not elected. In 1992, he suffered an impeachment process for an influence trafficking scheme during his government, and corruption in family home reforms in Brasilia.
