In the month she became a defendant, in April this year, Maria do Socorro had the biggest paycheck since her precautionary dismissal
Judge Maria do Socorro Barreto Santiagofrom the Court of Justice of Bahia (TJ-BA), earned R$1.3 million in salaries since his removal from the Court due to suspected of selling sentences, in April 2024.
Target of Operation Faroeste and today in the dock following a complaint received by the Superior Court of Justice (STJ), the judge is accused of receiving bribes from the scheme through checks, cash deposits, a Rolex watch and even dinners at a Japanese restaurant in Salvador, according to the Attorney General’s Office (PGR).
Estadão asked the Bahian court for clarification on the payments, which recorded a monthly average of R$54,300 over the 24 months of absence, but there was no response.
When Maria do Socorro became a defendant for passive corruption, the defense, represented by lawyers Bruno Espiñeira and Victor Quintiere,confirmed that there was no proof of criminal practice and maintained that the PGR presented new facts in the final arguments that were not originally included in the complaint.
“The defense fully trusts in the trial to be carried out by the Judiciary, believing in the technical, impartial and well-founded conduct of the case, in strict compliance with the constitutional guarantees of due legal process. The defense reaffirms its conviction in the absolute innocence of the judge, who, throughout the entire criminal prosecution, maintained conduct compatible with legality, ethics and the duties inherent to the exercise of the judiciary”, said the lawyers.
In the month he became a defendant, in April this year, Maria do Socorro had the biggest paycheck since her precautionary removal. The judge received R$104 thousand net. In 2026, payments already total R$267 thousand. In 2025, she received R$664 thousand.
Operation Faroeste is an investigation by the Federal Police under the supervision of the STJ – Court that has the power to prosecute judges. The PF points out that the operator Adailton Maturino, identified as a false consul of Guinea-Bissauand his wife, lawyer Geciane Maturino, would be responsible for corrupting Maria do Socorro.
According to the PGR, it simulated loans with family members totaling R$480,000 to hide bribe payments from Adailton Maturino through checks from one of his companies.
The indictment further states that the magistrate used her son-in-law to pay, in cash, an installment of R$ 275 thousand to buy a housea resource that would also have illicit origins.
The investigation also shows that Adailton Maturino bought a Rolex watch worth R$120,000 to present to the judge. “The Rolex was actually found in the possession of Maria do Socorro. In addition to using the Rolex at events at the Court of Justice, the watch was seized from her home in compliance with the search and seizure warrant,” stated the PGR.
In closing arguments, the Prosecutor’s Office also reported that Adailton had an agreement with a Japanese restaurant in Salvador so that judges and judges with whom he was involved would frequent the place and charge the expenses to his account. According to the investigation, the operator’s company spent R$1.5 million on these expenses. Maria do Socorro appears among the regulars mentioned.
Operation Faroeste is one of the largest investigations in the country into corruption in the Judiciary. Launched in 2019, it identified a sentence sale scheme linked to land grabbing in western Bahia and involving magistrates, lawyers, businesspeople and lobbyists. In the initial phase of the operation, six magistrates, including judges and judges, were removed from their positions.
