RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – The Federal Prosecutor’s Office (MPF) in Brasília accepted the likely running of the statute of limitations in the Guarujá (SP) triplex case, and has advised the Federal Court of Brasilia to dismiss the case against ex-president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.
“Regarding the charges related to the payment of refurbishment, concealment of ownership of the triplex apartment 164-A, and the beneficiary of the renovations made, the extinction of liability to prosecution by statute of limitations on the state claim regarding the septuagenarian defendants, namely Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (born on 06/10/1945), José Adelmário Pinheiro Filho (born on 29/09/1951) and Agenor Franklin Magalhães Medeiros (born on 08/06/1948), is verified,” notes the document.
MORO’S BIAS
In the document, the Prosecutor’s Office also recalls that the Federal Supreme Court (STF) ruled ex-judge Sergio Moro biased – today a pre-candidate for the presidency, as Lula – in the proceedings against the leftist. The STF earlier ruled that the 13th Federal Court of Curitiba – the base of the now defunct Lava Jato operation – lacked jurisdiction to review the cases against Lula.
The Supreme Court’s decision led to the annulment of all procedural and pre-procedural steps in the case, taking it back to square one. Among the overturned rulings is the verdict in which Moro had sentenced Lula to 12 years and 1 month in prison in the triplex case – a sentence that was later reduced by the Superior Court of Justice (STJ) to just over 9 years.
In her opinion on the continuity of proceedings in the Federal District Court, Zollinger pointed out that, in compliance with the STF ruling, the evidence collected may not be used: “Therefore, the ratification of the accusation is inadmissible,” she said.
The statute of limitations is counted from the date the defendant is charged with a crime and can be interrupted due to certain procedural steps, such as the filing of an indictment by the Court. However, other factors, such as the age of the defendant, must also be taken into consideration when determining the statute of limitations. In such cases, the statute of limitations period in the Criminal Code is halved.
“COLLUSION”
The defense of ex-president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva said that there was “collusion” between ex-judge Sergio Moro and former prosecutor Deltan Dallagnol against Lula to remove him from the 2018 elections and attack his reputation. The statement was made after the Federal Prosecutor’s Office recognized the statute of limitations in the Guarujá triplex case.
In a statement, attorneys Cristiano Zanin Martins and Valeska Teixeira Martins argue that the request for shelving should put an end to the case that “was artificially structured from collusion of ex-judge Sergio Moro and former prosecutor Deltan Dallagnol.”
Lula’s defense counsel maintains that the goal was “to arrest ex-president Lula, to remove him from the 2018 elections and to unduly attack his reputation.”