Minister Flávio Dino, of the Federal Supreme Court (STF), ordered the Federal Police to investigate suspected deviations from amendments sent to four cities, including Arari (MA) and Zabelê (PB), where, as GLOBO showed, the resources disappear in the city halls’ accounts. In the decision, the judge points out that the reported facts “constitute evidence of possible crimes”.
Arari’s amendment was sent by the leader of União Brasil in the Chamber, deputy Pedro Lucas Fernandes (MA). In a note, the parliamentarian stated that he had fulfilled his role by sending the resources to the municipality, but that the execution of the funds is up to the city hall, “which must apply them in accordance with the established rules”. “My commitment is to ensure investments that improve the lives of the population, bring concrete benefits to the communities and strengthen the development of Arari”, says Pedro Lucas. Zabelê’s amendment was sent by former deputy Edna Henrique (Republicanos-PB), who did not return contact.
In the order requesting the opening of the investigation, signed this Sunday (23), Dino states that the GLOBO report describes “indications of deviations in the application of resources from parliamentary amendments in the municipalities of Arari (MA) and Zabelê (PB)” and determines that the Federal Police “adopt the appropriate measures within the scope of its competence, promoting the joining of investigations already opened or opening new ones, if applicable”.
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In October this year, O GLOBO traveled to Arari, a city in Maranhão with 30 thousand inhabitants located 170 kilometers from São Luís, to show that an amendment worth R$ 1.25 million to recover local roads took a different path. According to the current mayor, Maria Alves Muniz (MDB), the money disappeared.
“This amount simply disappeared. It was not used for any work”, stated the mayor at the time.
Bank receipts from Arari city hall, obtained by GLOBO, show that the amount was transferred to four municipal accounts, diluting the figures with resources received from other sources. The sequence of transfers made it impossible to track where the money went. Author of the nomination, Pedro Lucas said, at the time, that he did not know how the resources were spent by the city hall. For him, it is former mayor Rui Filho, who commanded the city when the amendment was sent, who “needs to be accountable for the application of resources”. Questioned by the report, Rui Filho stated that the amendment served to pay for “works and services”, but without specifying which ones.
In Zabelê (PB), a municipality with 2,200 inhabitants 317 kilometers from João Pessoa, the city hall announced the construction of a new park in February last year. An illustrative video, produced by an architecture firm in Recife, showed what the place would look like, with a bike path, food court, running track and a large space for events on the edge of a lake. An amendment worth R$3 million sent by then federal deputy Edna Henrique in July 2023 would guarantee the work.
In February, however, when the park was promised to the population, there was no more money. Bank statements of the account in which the amount had been deposited showed a balance of just R$ 240. A consultation carried out by GLOBO in the State Court of Auditors (TCE-PB) system on October 3 indicated a slightly higher figure, of R$ 304.61.
The financial movement exposed the same modus operandi used in Arari, with the registration of at least 30 transfers, in amounts ranging from R$20,000 to R$500,000, from September 2023 to January 2024, to other accounts linked to the city hall. Thus, the amendment values were mixed with resources used for current expenses, such as paying salaries, small services and utility bills. In practice, the maneuver prevented knowing the destination of the money. Asked where the amendment ended up, the team of the current mayor, Jorsamara Neves (PSD), indicated that the report spoke to her cousin, Dalyson Neves (PSDB), predecessor in the position and for whom she was deputy mayor in the last administration. He also did not explain how he used the resources. Two years after the amount was transferred to the municipality, there is no sign of the park.
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Last month, O GLOBO published reports retracing the route taken by some amendments from their nomination until they reached their final destination. In some cases, he found sequences of bank transfers carried out by city halls that, in the words of public accounts experts, resemble the method used to launder money.
The amounts are deposited in a passing account and then transferred, being mixed with other funds used by the municipality for current payments, such as water, electricity and civil servants’ salaries.
Cases like Zabelê and Arari are in the sights of STF ministers, who have at least 80 open investigations involving the transfer of amendments — some of them confidential. Federal Police operations in recent months have highlighted suspicions of the use of oranges, transfers to shell companies and loan sharks used to collect back the amounts transferred to city halls.
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Other cases
In addition to the cases revealed by GLOBO, Dino also ordered two other amendments to be investigated, sent to Tartarugalzinho (AP) and Porto Walter (AC). On September 18, 2025, the UOL portal published a report pointing out signs of irregularities in bidding processes in Tartarugalzinho, a case that will also be investigated by the PF.
Another case was shown, on October 11, 2025, by the newspaper Folha de S.Paulo, which reported evidence of deviations in the application of resources from parliamentary amendments in the municipality of Porto Walter (AC). According to the publication, the amount allegedly diverted was to pave a branch line that crosses parts of the Indigenous Territory of the Jaminawa people of Igarapé Preto.
