Judge of the Federal Regional Court for the First District (TRF-1), Solange Salgado da Silva, annulled the arrest of Banco Master owner, Daniel Forcaro, and other prisoners in Operation Zero Compliance, on Friday (28/11).
In addition to Forcaro, former partner Augusto Lima should be released; Luiz Antonio Paul, Alberto Felix de Oliveira and Angelo Ribeiro da Silva.
In a decision he signed this evening, the judge understood that “despite the initial presence of justifiable elements of the prison decree, it is important to emphasize that the crimes attributed to the patient do not involve violence or a serious threat to the person.”
He added: “Furthermore, there is no evidence of perceived seriousness or current danger to public order that would justify, exceptionally, the maintenance of the maximum degree of preventive detention.”
“Although the risks to criminal law enforcement have been highlighted, they can currently be mitigated by adopting non-prison precautionary measures, such as passport retention and electronic monitoring, which are sufficient to contain crimes,” Solange Salgado said. Ocean of freedom and to meet precautionary purposes, consistent with the subsidiary and exceptional nature of early dismissal.
Escape thesis
In the decision, the judge commented on the escape theory referred to by the Federal Police and rejected by the defense. The judge considered that the lawyers attached evidence “proving that the patient had previously informed the Central Bank of his international trip to Dubai, after he was officially informed of the reason for the trip – the sale of a financial institution – during an official meeting held on the same date of boarding the plane.”
“Therefore, it appears that the remaining risk of evasion from the area of guilt can be controlled by a less difficult measure, namely surrendering and retaining the passport(s), proving that this measure is appropriate and proportionate,” he stressed.
He pointed out, “With regard to the ministerial claim that supports the possibility of the continuation of illegal activity through “parallel companies,” it was noted that this risk can be neutralized by imposing a ban on carrying out management or management activities for legal entities, taking into account the principles of proportionality and adequacy, as stipulated in Article 319, Section Six, of the Code of Criminal Procedure.”
Those being investigated must adhere to the following precautionary measures:
- Appear periodically before the court, within the deadline and in accordance with the conditions it determines, to report and justify the activities (Criminal Procedure Code, Article 319, 1);
- Prohibition of contact with other persons being investigated and witnesses (Article 319, III, CPC): absolute prohibition of maintaining contact, by any means (personal, telephone, distance or through an intermediary), with other persons being investigated in the context of the “zero compliance” process, as well as with witnesses and employees/former employees of Banco Master and BRB;
- Prohibition of being absent from the municipality in which you reside without obtaining prior permission from the court (Criminal Procedure Code, Article 319, 4), with the prohibition of being absent from the country and retaining a passport (Criminal Procedure Code, Article 320) already fully established by the judge of first instance;
- Suspension of the exercise of activity of an economic or financial nature: suspension of management, direction or management activities of any legal entities in which they appear as partners or participants, especially those related to the facts under investigation, with the aim of preventing the recurrence of the crime (Article 319, VI, of the Code of Criminal Procedure);
- Electronic monitoring: To monitor compliance with other measures (Article 319, IX, CPC), the persons being investigated must keep the equipment in perfect working order and charged.
- The electronic ankle bracelet, in this context, presents itself as an appropriate and sufficient tool to reduce the recurrence of crimes and ensure the application of criminal law.
In addition to ensuring effective oversight and supervision of compliance with precautionary measures other than imprisonment.
prison
The Federal Police (PF) arrested Forcaro when he tried to leave the country via São Paulo International Airport, in Guarulhos, after announcing the sale of Master to a consortium of global investors led by Fictor.
Police identified a flight risk, saying the banker would travel to Malta, in Europe, and detained him in the departure area on the night of November 17. Forcaro’s defense states that he informed the Central Bank (BC) that he would travel to Dubai to complete the sale of the Master.
The banker is being investigated over an alleged R$12 billion fraud related to credit portfolios sold to Banco de Brasília (BRB), which announced the purchase of Master in March this year – the takeover was blocked by the BC, which ordered the liquidation of Banco Vorcaro last week.