Brazilian Senate Employee Charged With Drug Trafficking Surrenders to Police

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – A Brazilian Senate worker investigated for involvement in drug trafficking surrendered to the Federal District Civil Police on Wednesday night, July 3rd.

Rodrigo Santos Ramos, employed at the Technical Advisory Office of the General Directorate, since February 2019, was considered a fugitive by the police, after not having appeared to give testimony at the Coordination for Repression of Drugs (Cord). He was remanded into custody by the court.

According to the Transparency Portal, the worker receives a monthly salary of R$28,000. Ramos and Lucas Ribeiro Pereira, 32 years old, employees of the Federal Audit Court (TCU), were making a substantial profit from the sale of a gourmet marijuana species, genetically modified and with high hallucinogenic power.

According to Cord, a large part of the suspects’ clientele was made up of civil servants from federal agencies. The police operation was launched on June 19th.

Lucas Pereira was arrested in the act and transferred to the Papuda penitentiary complex. Rodrigo Ramos had not been located at home on the day of the action and claimed to be on paid leave.

In a statement, Rodrigo Santos’ defense said that the accused surrendered voluntarily and that he “did not engage in flight or make any attempt to hinder the investigation”. In the document, the lawyers responsible for the defense of Rodrigo, Thiago Turbay and João Paulo Boaventura, defended the innocence of the Senate employee.

“There is no reference in the case file to the sale and marketing of drugs by the investigators, which was attested to by the delegate conducting the investigation himself.

“The defense and the accused reinforce their belief in the institutions and prosecuting bodies and the judiciary, which must ensure the legality of procedures and unbiased investigation of the facts,” added the lawyers.

During the execution of the search and seizure warrants issued by the court, the police found portions of a well-known “gourmet marijuana”, widely consumed by high-income users. Each gram of the weed cost up to R$200. A kilo of the drug would be worth R$20,000.

(Source: Metropoles)