The subject of several allegations of corruption and the use of state assets for illicit enrichment, namely embezzlement of valuable gifts of gold and diamonds offered to Brazil by foreign governments and which he ordered to be sold in the US in order to save money, former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro is trying to prosecute for these crimes of his former adjutant Lieutenant Colonel Mauro Cid. In an interview in which he almost always used half-words and evasive phrases, Bolsonaro hinted that Cid had autonomy in office and that if something was done wrong, it was done without his order or knowledge.
“He (Mauro Cida) had autonomy. I didn’t order anything from anyone. And I want to clear things up as soon as possible,” Bolsonaro told O Estado de S. Paulo during his trip this Friday. to the agribusiness-dominated state of Goiás in central-western Brazil, one of his most loyal electoral strongholds, where he traveled to collect tribute from allied regional deputies.
On the same day, one of Bolsonaro’s lawyers, Paulo Cunha Bueno, confirmed in another interview the greater autonomy enjoyed by Mauro Cid, who has been arrested in Brazil since May in another case involving the former president. According to the lawyer, without directly accusing Sid of anything, this great independence and ability to make decisions without consulting the head of state is inherent in the function, since the volume of cases and requests coming from all sides is huge, and the assistant is the one who holds the position , has to make most of the decisions, because he cannot constantly ask the president about everything.
The position of Bolsonaro and his lawyer, suggesting that the former ruler should not be accused of things he did not even know about, but without denying that crimes took place, arose after the lieutenant colonel’s new lawyer said, also in an interview, that Mauro Cid admits to wrongdoing but will accuse the former boss of being the mastermind. In that interview, attorney Cesar Bittencourt added that Syd would go further and admit that Bolsonaro was the beneficiary of the US official gift sale and that the money was given to him in cash to leave no trace.
These are several valuable gifts received by Jair Bolsonaro during his reign, namely necklaces, rings, watches and other items made of pure gold and encrusted with precious stones, donated to Brazil by Saudi Arabia. According to an investigation by the Brazilian Federal Police, with the support of the FBI, the US Federal Police, these official gifts, which were supposed to be included in the assets of the Brazilian state, were delivered on a presidential plane when Bolsonaro left Brazil on the day before the end of his term, in 2022. they were sold in the US and the sums collected were delivered to that country to the former president in cash so that they could not be traced.
Author: Domingos Grilo Serrinha This Correspondent in Brazil
Source: CM Jornal
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