Understanding the massive renovation operation accused of withholding 26 billion Brazilian reais

• Offshore companies, investment funds and fintech companies: Understanding Refit Group’s asset concealment network
• “We have no time to waste”: the left pushes for a vote on PL for the continuing debtor after a new operation against the Refit group

The group is headed by businessman Ricardo Magro, referred to as the country’s biggest tax evader, and is the main debtor of ICMS in the state of São Paulo and one of the largest companies in the federation. Magro lives in Miami, but was one of the targets of the arrest warrants, as were members of his family.

According to investigators, they are suspected of being part of a criminal organization and committing crimes against the economic and tax system, money laundering and other violations. Two million Brazilian reais in cash and eight bags of emeralds worth about R$90,000 were confiscated. Agents also found a report confirming that the stone was in a raw condition, and they collected cell phones, computers and documents.

The amount of R$10.2 billion linked to all members of the group, including real estate and vehicles, was immediately blocked to guarantee unpaid tax credit. In parallel, the Public Prosecutor’s Office of the National Treasury adopted measures in the Federal Court to make another R$1.2 billion from the company unavailable.

The São Paulo Public Prosecutor’s Office states that many companies linked to Refit are trying to avoid responsibility for collecting ICMS, a mechanism discovered by the Ministry of Finance. The group ignored tax obligations and developed new tax fraud strategies to avoid paying taxes and harm free competition.

Authorities also say the organization maintains financial relationships with companies and people associated with the hidden carbon operation. The action was carried out in August, and targeted a money laundering scheme used by the Primeiro Comando da Capital (PCC), the country’s largest faction. Operation Carbon Chain was subsequently launched, four vessels were detained for refit and the refinery was closed.

In a note issued on Thursday, Revit said that the aforementioned “tax debt” “is being questioned by the company in court, just as countless Brazilian companies do that do not agree to the charge.” “This is therefore a legitimate legal dispute,” he argues, and not “an attempt to hide revenue or defraud tax collections.”

Investigations indicate that the methods of concealing and covering the beneficiaries of the scheme were carried out using a wide network of collaborators. Through several fraudulent measures, supported by successive institutional and financial layers, the group ensured its management and expansion in the sectors of the fuel production and distribution chain. In practice, the authorities assert that the organization used companies, investment funds, and offshore companies to hide profits obtained from criminal practices.

Several companies acted as intermediaries for individuals and legal entities, purchasing naphtha, hydrocarbons and diesel from abroad, with resources coming from distributors associated with the group. Between 2020 and 2025, more than R$32 billion worth of fuel was imported. Furthermore, the IRS identified that a large financial operator acted as a partner for other institutions that also provided services to Refit, in transactions amounting to R$72 billion in one year.

The illegally obtained resources were then invested on other fronts, such as purchasing real estate, to give the appearance of legitimacy and make tracking more difficult. To date, 17 funds linked to Refit have been identified, with assets of up to R$8 billion, and which, in most cases, have only one shareholder. In other cases, there is the participation of foreign partners, whose companies are incorporated in the state of Delaware, in the United States, where it is possible to open companies with guaranteed anonymity and without local taxes.

This mechanism means that the entities are no longer subject to tax in both the United States and Brazil and, according to the IRS, are “usually associated with strategies aimed at money laundering or asset protection.” Finance Minister Fernando Haddad described the use of American companies as “a very dangerous international triangulation.”

One of the major international operations was the acquisition of Masdar in Houston, Texas, which generated R$12.5 billion between 2020 and 2025. The IRS has already identified more than 15 offshore companies in the United States, which are sending resources to buy stocks and real estate in Brazil, for a total of about R$1 billion.

Influencer and former secretary

In addition to Ricardo Magro, owner of Refit, and his father João Manuel Magro, one of Ricardo’s sons was also among the targets of the massive operation. When contacted by the law firm representing the businessman, based in Jardins, São Paulo, they did not comment.

Others include influencer and political commentator Cristiano Moreira Pinto Beraldo, who works for the Jovem Pan network. In the first half of 2021, he served as Rio Municipal Secretary for Tourism, appointed by Mayor Eduardo Paes. The following year, Peraldo ran for state representative in São Paulo for Uniao Brazil, when he declared assets worth R$1.8 million to the electoral court. On social media, he identifies himself as a “disaffected Brazilian” and criticizes the federal government.

According to investigations, the influencer runs offshore companies in the United States that actually belong to Ricardo Magro. One of them, Cascais Bay LLC, is run by Alessandra Engel Magro, the businessman’s wife. Another company, Oceana KB Real Estate LCC, is owned by Ricardo himself.

Jovem Ban stated, in a statement, that she would not comment, but confirmed that he naturally participated in this Thursday’s programming. When Beraldo was contacted, he did not return. He posted a video clip on social networks in which he said that he was surprised that his name was involved in the operation, and stated that he would stay away from “extremist” activities and political commentary.

-I have more than 25 years of work, I worked hard to earn every penny I earned, and I was able to establish my professional activity. I specialize in managing and organizing companies in difficulty and today I work in the United States.

As Globo columnist Lauro Jardim has shown, Jonathas Assuncão, former executive secretary of the Civic Council led by former minister and current senator Ciro Nogueira (PP-PI), was another target of the task force. Assunção is one of the CEOs of Refit.