The senator () chose a mayor who appointed two people convicted of militia practices as municipal secretaries of Belford Roxo (RJ), a city in Baixada Fluminense.
The announcement of Márcio Canella (União Brasil) as one of the candidates for Flávio’s alliance in Rio de Janeiro on Tuesday (24) confirms the rise of the mayor who has been involved with criminal organizations for years.
At the beginning of his administration, last year, Canella appointed former councilors Eduardo Araújo (PL) as secretary of Industry and Commerce, and Fábio Brasil, known as Fabinho Varandão (MDB), in the Sports and Leisure portfolio.
Araújo was already convicted of joining a militia in Baixada Fluminense at the time of his choice. Fabinho was sentenced last June on a charge that had been pending in court since 2018.
The mayor stated, in a statement, that the two “have not been part of the staff since last year” — they were dismissed in September. He also argued that the allies were elected councilors and were secretaries in the previous government.
“At the time of the appointment there was no final judgment, thus preventing any personal judgment from being made, as any citizen has the right to defense guaranteed by the Constitution”, said the mayor, in a statement.
Former secretary Eduardo Araújo stated that his conviction “took place without any evidence of materiality”. “It is worth clarifying that the aforementioned case is under appeal at the Court of Justice, where we believe that this entire legal error will be reviewed, believing in an acquittal.”
Lawyer João Carlos Stogmuller, who represents Fabinho Varandão in the criminal action, said that “the defense presented a request to annul the convictions due to numerous procedural nullities”. He also said that the former secretary handed over his position at city hall, “having as a priority the search for the truth in the accusations made against him.”
When contacted, Flávio did not comment on his ally’s ties.
Canella’s two former secretaries were running for re-election in 2024 due to the accusations they were facing. To reject the duo’s registration, the TSE (Superior Electoral Court) used political parties as an argument.
Araújo, a military police officer, was sentenced in the first instance in 2023 to eight years in prison on charges of joining a militia in the city. According to the sentence, the criminal organization integrated by the councilor generated “a constant feeling of insecurity, fear and unrest” in the region. He would have the role of avoiding arrests of group members due to his influence.
Fabinho, in turn, was convicted in June on charges of extortion and illegal possession of weapons. According to the Public Ministry, he explored internet distribution services in neighborhoods of Belford Roxo and threatened potential competitors in the region.
Despite Araújo’s conviction and the accusation against Fabinho, as well as the Electoral Court’s veto, Canella appointed them to the first level of the municipality.
The two were dismissed, but continue to participate in the mayor’s inaugurations and political events. Among the pre-campaign agendas in which they participated are , , who will run for federal deputy and should use the Canella region as his electoral base.
This is not the first case of Canella’s political proximity to those convicted of criminal organizations. The mayor participated in different campaign events in 2018, when he ran for a place in Alerj (Legislative Assembly), alongside former PM Juracy Prudêncio, known as Jura, appointed as head of a militia in Baixada Fluminense.
At the time, Jura was serving a semi-open sentence for a conviction that had already become final and unappealable for murder and criminal association. He even delayed his return to jail by a day to participate, on stage, in a rally alongside Canella.
At the time, the mayor’s campaign was carried out in alliance with federal deputy Daniela Carneiro (União), former Minister of Tourism in the Lula government.
The duo’s election was marked by irregular support from Military Police officers and the . Canella received 49% of the votes in the city at the time, the same percentage as the former minister — among medium or large cities in the country.
The two recently broke off their alliance. Canella kept Giane Prudêncio, Jura’s wife, as an advisor at Alerj between 2019 and 2023.
