Prosecutors appeal Miguel Alves’ acquittal for malfeasance in political office

The Public Ministry (MP) will appeal against the acquittal of former Secretary of State Miguel Alves of the “office crime committed by a political official”, which he was accused of co-authoring with businesswoman Manuela Sousa.

In a press release published this Friday on the website of the Prosecutor General of the District of Porto, the deputy indicates that he “does not agree” with the decision to acquit also the former President of the Chamber of Caminha, “so he will intervene with the appropriate resource.”

In the ruling of the Viana do Castelo Judicial Court, announced on Thursday, the judge who presided over the panel that examined the case emphasized that the court ruled that “the deputy’s accusation was not proven” and that it was not supported by “any means of proof” co-authored a crime, malfeasance on the part of a political official, of which the former mayor of the PS and a businesswoman were accused.

The deputy recalls that “in the public indictment it was described that the defendant, who at that time was the president of the municipal council of Caminha, entered into a contract with the defendant in 2014 on behalf of the municipality and purely verbally for the provision of communication services, image management and consulting.”

Furthermore, the indictment stated that “these services were provided by a company owned by the defendant in July 2014 without any formal, contractual or accounting framework, namely without any external application, invoice or order or equivalent document , for the purpose of billing for services provided to the municipality.”

“Also in accordance with the understanding of the deputy expressed in the indictment, in order to ensure the legal coverage of this contract and to ensure the possibility of payment, the defendant agreed with the defendant and they agreed to formalize the procedure by direct agreement, the original provision of which was 3,500 euros plus VAT, which was intended to pay for services already provided,” says a press release from the Office of the Prosecutor General of the District of Porto.

The MP adds that “this public procurement procedure took place only in March 2015, which put an end to the accusation that was intended to give public contracts retroactive effect, without legal justification.”

Miguel Alves, who resigned as undersecretary to the prime minister in 2022 after learning of the indictment, on Thursday expressed satisfaction with the acquittal and did not rule out a return to political activity.

“When I resigned from the government because of this accusation, I knew that I had done nothing, but I also knew that in carrying out my duties I had to be above all suspicion, and at that moment I was already accused.” I resigned and came to defend myself. I did not ask to start an investigation. I wanted the trial to take place as quickly as possible, and everything to be fully clarified, nothing was proven,” he emphasized.