The coordination of investigations by the , which investigates a fraud scheme involving the and motivated the breach of confidentiality by Fábio Luís Lula da Silva, the , son of the president (PT), was changed.
The change motivated the opposition to call the (Attorney General’s Office) and file a request to summon the director general of the PF to give explanations.
Sem Desconto’s investigations were coordinated by the delegate who headed the General Coordination of Finance Police. Now, the cases have been transferred to Cinq (Coordination of Inquiries in Superior Courts), which is the General Coordination for the Repression of Corruption, Financial Crimes and Money Laundering. Therefore, the delegate who headed the case was changed.
According to the PF, the change provides greater structure for the investigation and, apart from coordination, the delegates who worked in the investigations were maintained.
In a note, the Federal Police said that “the transfer [dos inquéritos] was designed to ensure greater efficiency and continuity in investigations, since Cinq has a permanent structure focused precisely on conducting sensitive and complex operations that are processed before the Federal Supreme Court”.
“It is worth noting that there was no change in the team conducting the investigations.”
The new head of the cases met this Friday morning (15) with the minister of the (Supreme Federal Court), rapporteur of the cases.
Mendonça demanded explanations regarding the exchange. At the meeting, the minister stated that he was not previously informed of the replacement and was uncomfortable.
People who follow the investigations have reported in recent weeks that they are concerned that there could be pressure on the team responsible for the investigations.
According to reports made by an authority who participated in the meeting, Mendonça would have demanded independence in the work of the new team and that there be no persecutions, but also that there be no delays in the investigations.
The PF explained at this Friday’s meeting that the movement was bureaucratic, merely a change in the coordination responsible for the issue, and that the delegates responsible for INSS inquiries will follow them.
Among Mendonça’s assistants, there is fear that this department will be overloaded, as it is also responsible for the Banco Master case, which could slow down the work.
In a statement, the minister’s office said that the meeting’s agenda was “updating the progress of the investigations and presenting the new coordination that takes care of Operation Without Discount (INSS case)”.
Operation Without Discount began in 2025 and has already led to the arrest of high-ranking members of the INSS and the creation of a CPI.
One of the lines worked on in the investigation, according to investigators, is the possibility that Lulinha was a hidden partner of lobbyist Antonio Carlos Camilo Antunes, known as Careca of the INSS.
The president’s son, however, is not considered formally investigated in the case by the PF, despite the breach and suspicions.
Lulinha’s lawyer, Marco Aurélio de Carvalho, claims that the president’s son “was not even called” to provide clarifications during the investigation, because he is not being investigated. He says he made himself available to Minister André Mendonça for any clarifications.
It also states that part of the case should have been closed “after the criminal leak” of part of the investigation.
With the change in coordination, senator Carlos Viana (Podemos-MG), who chaired the INSS CPI, sent a letter to the general director of the PF, Andrei Rodrigues.
In the document, the parliamentarian questions the motivation for the change, asks whether the STF was notified beforehand and whether there was full preservation of the investigative lines, the evidence already produced and the rest of the team.
In a statement, Viana stated that any situation that raises doubt or suspicion about the conduct of investigations of this magnitude is extremely serious. “Exchanges of this nature, at delicate moments in the investigation, require clear and immediate explanations to Brazilian society,” he said.
The INSS CPI ended at the end of March, with the victory of the government base, which managed to reject the text of rapporteur Alfredo Gaspar (União Brasil-AL) with the suggestion of indicting 216 people, including Lulinha.
The leader of the opposition in the Chamber, Cabo Gilberto Silva (-PB), in a request to the PGR, also asked that the body investigate the regularity of the change and ensure that evidence about fraud is preserved.
“The whole of Brazil demands answers. We are talking about one of the biggest scandals against retirees in the country’s recent history. And Brazilian society will not accept any attempt to interfere, shield or weaken investigations”, he wrote, in a publication on X (formerly Twitter).
The leader of the PL in the Chamber, (RJ), said he had filed a request for Andrei to go to the House to provide information about the episode. If approved, the request makes the presence of the PF general director mandatory.
