The Attorney General’s Office (PGR) denounced the former governor of Minas Gerais, Romeu Zema, for slander against the minister of the Federal Supreme Court (STF) Gilmar Mendes and asked for the politician to be sentenced to pay minimum compensation equivalent to 100 minimum wages for moral damages.
In the complaint filed with the Superior Court of Justice (STJ), the Federal Public Ministry maintains that Zema published content on social media falsely attributing the crime of passive corruption to the minister. According to the accusation, the post suggested that Gilmar had placed the judicial function “at the service of private interests”, in exchange for an undue advantage.
“The accused was not limited to formulating institutional criticism, political parody or non-conformity with a judicial decision”, states the PGR in the document. “By falsely attributing to Minister Gilmar Mendes the practice of passive corruption, he led to the type of slander”, continues the complaint.
The agency classified the conduct as the crime of increased slander, provided for in the Penal Code, combined with aggravating circumstances in article 141, applicable when the offense is committed against a public official due to their function and through a means that facilitates wide dissemination.
The PGR also highlighted the reach of the publication on digital platforms. According to the complaint, until the indictment was filed, the content had registered 487.2 thousand views on Network X and 2.8 million views on Instagram. For the Public Ministry, the repercussion increased the damage to the objective honor and functional reputation of the STF minister.
The body also requires that, at the end of the criminal action, a minimum amount of civil compensation equivalent to 100 minimum wages be set, “compatible with the seriousness of the slanderous accusation, the extent of disclosure and the public repercussion of the offense”.
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Puppets
Last month, the pre-candidate for President for Novo published a video in which the STF ministers are represented by puppets — Dias Toffoli asks Gilmar’s puppet to suspend the breach of his confidentiality, determined by the Organized Crime CPI; In exchange for the annulment, Gilmar’s character asks for “a courtesy” at the Tayayá resort, which once had Toffoli’s brothers as owners and is involved in investigations linked to the Banco Master scandal.
Following this, Gilmar sent a criminal report to Corte’s colleague, Alexandre de Moraes, requesting that Zema be investigated due to the publication of the video in which he satirizes his decisions, which the Minas Gerais native defined as “absurd”.
In the request sent to Moraes, Gilmar states that the content shared by the former governor of Minas Gerais “vilifies not only the honor and image of this Federal Supreme Court, but also of my own person”.
