Cezinha de Madureira Said His Phone Was Stolen. Three Days Later the Police Searched His Home.
BRAZIL · INVESTIGATIONS
Key Facts
- —Who he is Cezinha de Madureira, a Brazilian congressman and a leader in one of the country’s largest churches.
- —What happened Federal police searched his addresses on Monday. He was not arrested and faces no charge.
- —The suspicion That he sold access to judges. Investigators are looking at influence peddling and money laundering.
- —The meeting He is alleged to have arranged a private encounter between a supreme court judge and a banker.
- —The banker Daniel Vorcaro, whose bank collapsed in November owing about US$2.3bn.
- —The catch He spent the weekend telling followers his phone had been stolen on Friday.
In an affair built entirely on recovered text messages, a politician losing his phone is not a small detail.
Over the weekend Cezinha de Madureira posted videos telling his followers a painful story. The Brazilian congressman said his telephone had been stolen on Avenida Paulista on Friday.
Within fifteen minutes, he said, the thieves had reached his bank accounts and his credit card and changed his messaging password. On Monday morning the federal police arrived at his addresses with search warrants.
Who He Is
He sits in Brazil’s lower house for the Liberal Party, representing São Paulo. He also leads within one of the country’s largest evangelical churches.
That combination makes him a broker. Brazil’s evangelical bloc in congress is large enough to decide legislation, and men who can speak for it are worth knowing.
Monday’s operation was the third phase of an inquiry into a group suspected of selling influence over court decisions. Four search warrants were issued.
He was searched and not arrested. No charge has been filed, his defence has not commented, and nothing here has been tested in court.
The Meeting in the Police File
What makes this more than an ordinary corruption inquiry is the company he is alleged to have kept. Police material describes a private meeting in São Paulo on 14 March 2025.
The two people said to have been brought together are André Mendonça, a justice of Brazil’s Supreme Federal Court, and Daniel Vorcaro. Vorcaro owned Banco Master.
That bank collapsed in November 2025, leaving a hole of about US$2.3bn and roughly 1.6 million savers out of pocket. Vorcaro was arrested boarding a private jet to Malta.
The congressman is quoted in the material writing to Vorcaro with a short line. The minister, he wrote, is already waiting for you.
Mendonça is not an incidental figure in this story. He is the judge who unsealed the police report that set Brazil’s highest court against itself two weeks ago.
Why a Missing Phone Matters Here
Almost everything known about this affair came off a telephone. The crisis began on 1 September when Mendonça released 218 pages drawn from Vorcaro’s device.
On Sunday another justice ordered the police to hand him the raw data from the same phone by eleven that night. It arrived on Monday morning.
Messages, not documents, are what these investigations turn on. In that context a politician announcing the loss of his own device three days before a raid is conspicuous.
Two readings are available and neither can be dismissed. A man genuinely robbed on Avenida Paulista would say so loudly, and so would a man expecting a visit.
The account rests on his own videos and a newspaper column published on Monday morning. No police report confirming the theft has surfaced.
What Happens to a Congressman in Brazil
Brazilian federal deputies enjoy what the constitution calls privileged jurisdiction. They cannot be tried by an ordinary judge.
So the warrants were authorised by Justice Flávio Dino of the Supreme Federal Court, not by a trial court. Any prosecution would run through the same building.
It is also why this case is tangled with the crisis inside that court. The judges deciding these warrants are the judges currently arguing about one another.
On Tuesday the eleven of them meet in emergency session. The subject is the federal police leadership, which is to say the same police who searched Cezinha de Madureira’s addresses on Monday.
Where It Stands
The inquiry is at the evidence-gathering stage. Searches at this point are about collecting material, not about proving a case.
Many Brazilian investigations of this kind end without charges. Some end with a congressman losing his seat, and a few end with prison.
What can be said today is narrow. Four warrants were executed, a deputy’s addresses were searched, and he remains free and uncharged.
His phone, according to him, is with whoever took it on Friday. The police will have their own view about that.
More: Brazil news in English, every day from The Rio Times.
Frequently Asked Questions
Was Cezinha de Madureira arrested?
No. Federal police executed four search warrants on Monday, 14 September 2026. No detention has been reported and no charge has been filed.
What is he suspected of?
Influence peddling, trading on prestige, passive corruption and money laundering, within an inquiry into a group suspected of selling influence over judicial decisions.
What is the link to Brazil’s court crisis?
He is alleged to have arranged a private March 2025 meeting between Justice André Mendonça and Daniel Vorcaro, the owner of the collapsed Banco Master. Mendonça later unsealed the report that triggered the crisis.
Is the stolen phone claim confirmed?
No. It rests on videos he posted over the weekend and a newspaper column published on Monday. No police report confirming a theft has surfaced.
Who authorised the searches?
Justice Flávio Dino of the Supreme Federal Court. Brazilian federal deputies have privileged jurisdiction, so warrants against them come from that court rather than a trial judge.
Sources: Revista Fórum, Diário do Centro do Mundo and the Metrópoles column of Igor Gadelha, all of 14 September 2026.
This article was produced by The Rio Times’ automated newsroom system. How we use AI · Report an error · Editorial responsibility: Matthias Camenzind, Editor-in-Chief
Brazil runoff, Sunday, October 25: Brazil runoff: date, poll closing times and when results start. Latest: Brazil runoff polls, Flávio 51%, Lula 49%.