A series of recent investigations affected at least four allies of the senator and national president of , damaging his image and undermining his electoral projects for 2026. The most recent target was , owner of Banco Master, arrested in the operation on Monday (17), investigated for alleged crimes against the financial system.
When contacted to discuss the issue, the senator did not send a response. All those investigated deny committing illegalities.
Shortly before Vorcaro, other people close to Ciro became the target of rumored investigations. At the beginning of November, a former advisor to the senator, , was the target of a search and seizure action within the scope of , which investigates the infiltration of the fuel market in Piauí.
Linhares is not being investigated in the operation, but the Civil Police want to hear from him about his proximity to the main suspects of leading the scheme. As the Panel showed, he went on international trips with those being investigated and . In addition to the long-lasting professional relationship, Ciro is the godfather of one of Linhares’ daughters.
In August, Carbono Oculto, a mega-operation that targets the relationship between the fuel sector, the PCC and Faria Lima, mentioned that the company Refit, the trade name of the Manguinhos refinery, owned by the Fit group, had entered into the faction’s scheme. The businessman denies it.
In 2024, Ciro presented amendments that earned the nickname “”, based on the interpretation that they benefited Magro’s company, which has billions of ICMS debts. The amendments proposed by the senator created exceptions in classifying a company as a persistent debtor that could, in theory, be taken advantage of by Refit.
In May, businessman Fernando Oliveira Lima, known as Fernandin OIG, then in the crosshairs of the CPI das Bets, entered the radar of , which asked the STF (Supreme Federal Court) for authorization to investigate the relations between him and Ciro Nogueira — who defended the businessman from criticism at the CPI and traveled on his jet to tour Monaco, showed .
Fernandin OIG, Linhares and Ciro carried out one that was also revealed by Piauí magazine. The former advisor received R$625,000 from the betting businessman. In the same period, Linhares transferred R$35,000 to the senator’s personal account.
Nogueira told the magazine that the amount was a refund for a hotel reservation in Capri, Italy, and that the R$625,000 was payment for a luxury watch, negotiated directly between the businessman and his former advisor.
In the case of Vorcaro, in addition to providing company at parties and other events, Ciro became one of the banker’s main bridges with the political world. It was through these relationships that Vorcaro was able to advance the negotiation for the sale of Master to BRB (Banco de Brasília), which ended up being vetoed by the Central Bank.
While the business was struggling, Ciro presented initiatives that could help Vorcaro. One measure was called “”, in 2024, with the aim of increasing the coverage value of the FGC (Credit Guarantee Fund) from R$250 thousand to R$1 million. If it had been approved, it would have resulted in an even bigger hole in the fund today — the FGC is already projecting a rescue that is currently the largest in history.
Another measure in which Ciro participated was one that would give Congress powers to fire directors and the president of , interpreted as a way of putting pressure on the institution at the time it was deciding whether or not to approve the sale of Master to BRB.
In the same universe, one of those affected, Paulo Henrique Costa, by court decision, was once an ally of Ciro, but today they are away. Before arriving at the public bank in Brasília, he passed through Caixa, sponsored by the senator. During this period, however, they fell out and since then they have not spoken to each other and, according to reports, they do not even greet each other on social occasions.
In addition to this group, the former president (PL), of whom Ciro was minister of the Civil House and of whom he is a friend, was preventively arrested on Saturday (22).
In this scenario of wear and tear in his surroundings, Ciro explained retreat movements. First, he said that he informed Bolsonaro that his name is not available for the position of vice-president on the 2026 presidential ticket. Then, he announced that, “in view of the lack of common sense and strategy in the center and on the right”, he will defend that the main focus of the União Progressista federation (which will join União Brasil and PP) be the state elections.
Far from the presidential ticket, in which he was trying to become vice-president of (Republicanos-SP), he must seek re-election for Piauí.
“Ciro is the most rational, most serene and coherent of the right-wing leaders. He has been mainly responsible for mobilizing a center-right and right-wing presidential project for next year. That’s why he is also the most targeted. Weakening him is a way of disorganizing our project, so that’s why he is also in the spotlight”, says federal deputy Mauricio Neves (PP-SP), ally of the senator and president of the PP’s São Paulo directory.
“I think he got tired of the wear and tear, that’s why he wrote about prioritizing state elections and the federation benches. He tries to build, but many seem to only think about their own projects. So he submerges and focuses on the federation. Which I think is correct and has my support”, he adds.
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