Senator Jaques Wagner (PT-BA) decided to temporarily leave the leadership of the government in the Senate amid the progress of the Federal Police investigation into an alleged billion-dollar financial fraud scheme linked to Banco Master.
The removal was agreed with President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva during a meeting held this Wednesday (24), at Palácio da Alvorada. After the meeting, Wagner stated on social media that his priority, at this moment, will be to defend himself against the suspicions raised in the investigation.
“I just had a great meeting with President @LulaOficial, a conversation between friends, and we decided, by mutual agreement, that I will step away from leading the Government in the Federal Senate,” he wrote.
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Last week, the PF searched addresses linked to the senator in Salvador and Brasília. Investigators suspect that Wagner benefited from economic advantages allegedly related to the actions of agents interested in measures in Congress that could favor Banco Master.
The investigation also looks at the parliamentarian’s relationship with banker Augusto Lima, former partner of Daniel Vorcaro and owner of Banco Pleno, an institution that ended up liquidated by the Central Bank. Among the points analyzed are the purchase of a high-end property in Salvador and transactions worth R$3.5 million in the name of the senator’s family members.
Wagner denies wrongdoing. According to the senator, in addition to concentrating efforts to prove his innocence, he intends to continue acting politically in defense of the re-election of Lula, Bahian governor Jerônimo Rodrigues and his own candidacy for the Senate.
