The investigation, which led the MP to accuse former Caminha Mayor Miguel Alves of failing to respond, was launched “in an anonymous complaint” and not in another process, the Porto Regional Attorney General (PGRP) explained on Tuesday.
In a note posted on the website, PGRP explains that the investigation “began with an anonymous complaint and not, contrary to what was erroneously relayed by the Porto Regional Attorney General, in a certificate extracted from another process.”
The clarification comes after the Attorney General’s Office (PGR) responded to several media outlets on Thursday that the investigation “originated from a certificate extracted from the so-called ‘Operating Network’.”
For the prosecutor’s office, Miguel Alves violated public procurement rules when acquiring services.
The indictment, which Lusa had access to, alleges that the defendant, who resigned as Assistant Secretary of State to the Prime Minister after learning of the evasion charge, agreed with Manuela Couto, a businesswoman also accused of the same crime, public relations consultant. services “without any public procurement procedure”.
The indictment states that the process began due to “an anonymous complaint filed on the DCIAP portal.” [Departamento Central de Investigação e Ação Penal]July 3, 2019, noting that Caminha’s then mayor Miguel Alves “signed several contracts with MIT – Make It Happen, Branding Comunicacional, Lda, a company owned by businesswoman Manuela Couto” in 2015 and 2016.
According to the prosecution, in 2014 Miguel Alves and Manuela Couto “had been in contact for the purpose of providing communications services, image management and advising the municipality on communications with MIT and Mediana companies” owned and controlled by the defendant.
The indictment states that Miguel Alves and Manuela Couto, at a meeting held on July 4, 2014 in the city council of Caminha, agreed that one of the companies “will immediately begin to provide the municipality with consulting services in the field of communications.”
The MP says that, at least during July 2014 and from that date, the defendant Manuela Couto “established that the employees of her companies, namely MT and Mediana, provide press service and promotion of the Municipality of Caminha, which he did this with the knowledge and consent of the defendant Miguel Alves.”
“These communication and consulting services were actually provided by the two companies MIT and Mediana (…), but without any formal, contractual or accounting framework, namely without any external requirements, expense or warrant statements or equivalent documents, with indicating billing for services rendered by companies to the board, which were known to the defendant Miguel Alves, supports the prosecution.
The MP states that “only on March 30, 2015, as determined by the defendant Miguel Alves and after MIT and Mediana had already provided” services to the municipality “without any contracting procedure or legal or documentary support.” that the then president of that municipality in the district of Viana do Castelo “determined and instigated the initiation of the public procurement procedure”.
The accused are jointly charged with political evasion.
Manuela Couto, wife of the former mayor of Santo Tirso Joaquim Couto, is on trial in the “Operação Éter” trial, linked to illegal contracts awarded by the Tourist Organization of Porto and Northern Portugal (TPNP), involving 29 defendants and about 150 economic crimes.
Author: Portuguese
Source: CM Jornal
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