Pakistanis angry over detentions in Times Sq. case Monday, May 24, 2010
ISLAMABAD – Relatives of three men detained by Pakistan for alleged links to the suspect in the attempted Times Square bombing say the men are innocent.
They
AFP - Thursday, August 6TAIPEI (AFP) - - Taiwan's Beijing-friendly government on Wednesday denied boycotting an Australian film festival amid a row over the e
BERLIN (Reuters) - Chancellor Angela Merkel suffered a double blow on Thursday as a senior party ally in east German
Minister seeks closure of anti-Berlusconi websites Wednesday, December 16, 2009
ROME (AFP) - – The Italian government moved Tuesday to close down Internet sites encouraging further violence against Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, who
By ELAINE KURTENBACH,AP Business Writer AP - Wednesday, March 18SHANGHAI - Asia's stock market rally seemed to be running out of steam Wednesday, despite an
Edition:
U.S.
Arabic
Argentina
Brazil
Canada
China
France
Germany
India
Italy
Japan
Latin America
Mexico
Russia
Spain
United Kingdom
Home
Business
Business Home
Economy
Technology
Media
Small Business
Legal
Deals
Earnings
Social Pulse
Business Video
The Freeland File
Aerospace & Defense
Investing & Taxes Simplified
Markets
Markets Home
U.S. Markets
European Markets
Asian Markets
Global Market Data
Indices
M&A
Stocks
Bonds
Currencies
Commodities
Futures
Funds
peHUB
Dividends
World
World Home
U.S.
Brazil
China
Euro Zone
Japan
Africa
Mexico
Russia
India Insight
World Video
Reuters Investigates
Decoder
Politics
Politics Home
Supreme Court
Politics Video
Tech
Technology Home
MediaFile
Science
Tech Video
Tech Tonic
Social Pulse
Opinion
Opinion Home
Chrystia Freeland
John Lloyd
Felix Salmon
Jack Shafer
David Rohde
Nader Mousavizadeh
Lucy P. Marcus
Nicholas Wapshott
Bethany McLean
Anatole Kaletsky
Zachary Karabell
Edward Hadas
Hugo Dixon
Ian Bremmer
Lawrence Summers
Susan Glasser
The Great Debate
Reihan Salam
Frederick Kempe
Mark Leonard
Steven Brill
Breakingviews
Equities
Credit
Private Equity
M&A
Macro & Markets
Politics
Breakingviews Video
Money
Money Home
Tax Break
Lipper Awards 2012
Global Investing
MuniLand
Unstructured Finance
Linda Stern
Mark Miller
John Wasik
James Saft
Analyst Research
Alerts
Watchlist
Portfolio
Stock Screener
Fund Screener
Personal Finance Video
Money Clip
Investing 201
Life
Health
Sports
Arts
Faithworld
Business Traveler
Entertainment
Oddly Enough
Lifestyle Video
Pictures
Pictures Home
Reuters Photographers
Full Focus
Video
Reuters TV
Reuters News
Article
Comments (0)
Full Focus
Editor's choice
Our best photos from the last 24 hours. Slideshow
Best photos of the year 2012
Download our Wider Image iPad app
Follow Reuters
Facebook
Twitter
RSS
YouTube
Read
DNA pioneer James Watson takes aim at "cancer establishments"
6:34am EST
Commuter ferry crash in New York injures 57, 1 critical
|
3:26pm EST
The Kraken wakes: first images of giant squid filmed in deep ocean
|
08 Jan 2013
India lashes Pakistan after deadly Kashmir encounter
|
7:29am EST
Guru's view on Indian rape raises anger, but shared by many
8:08am EST
Discussed
98
Obama says U.S. can’t afford more showdowns over debt, deficits
87
AIG may join bailout suit against U.S. government
55
Analysis: Republicans start new Congress bruised and divided
Sponsored Links
Brazil's Lula may be investigated in corruption case
Tweet
Share this
Email
Print
Related News
Former Brazilian leader Lula likely to be investigated: papers
7:45am EST
Analysis: Brazil's once-envied energy matrix a victim of "hubris"
Mon, Jan 7 2013
UPDATE 2-Brazil's Lula knew about vote buying scheme - newspaper
Tue, Dec 11 2012
Analysis & Opinion
Delhi gang rape: Fast-track courts, juvenile laws don’t guarantee justice
In Russia, unheeded cries of corruption
Related Topics
World »
Brazil »
Syria's snipers
The frontlines of the sniper wars on the streets of Syria. Slideshow
Brazil's former President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva gestures during Seminar ''Mexico Siglo XXI'' in Mexico City, September 21, 2012.
Credit: Reuters/Edgard Garrido
BRASILIA |
Wed Jan 9, 2013 2:38pm EST
BRASILIA (Reuters) - Brazil's top prosecutor will look into allegations that former President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva was involved in a vote-buying scheme in Congress that led to the conviction of several of his closest aides for corruption.
Chief federal prosecutor Roberto Gurgel's office said in a statement on Wednesday that he would analyze the accusations of a businessman at the center of the corruption case, Marcos Valerio, who alleged Lula not only knew about the illegal scheme but received money from it.
If he considers the allegations to have substance, Gurgel could start investigating them or pass the case over to the judiciary. The results would determine if charges would be brought.
Lula led Brazil from 2003-2010 and is the political mentor to current President Dilma Rousseff. Although Rousseff has so far avoided any negative political fallout from the years-old scandal, that could change if Lula is found to have been directly involved.
A Brazilian newspaper reported earlier that Gurgel had declined to investigate the allegations himself and had decided to pass the case to be heard in a lower federal court where Lula can be probed since he no longer has immunity from prosecution.
A government source familiar with the case told Reuters that the prosecutor, who was appointed by Lula, was inclined to pass the matter onto a court.
Lula's foundation accused the O Estado de S.Paulo newspaper of misinforming its readers and said authorities had still not decided whether to investigate Valerio's allegations.
Valerio was sentenced to 40 years in prison for channeling public money to politicians during the early years of Lula's presidency, and his credibility as a witness is in some doubt.
The vote-buying scandal that erupted in 2005 almost brought down Lula's government and led to the biggest political corruption trial in Brazilian history.
Three top leaders of Lula's Workers' Party, including his former chief of staff Jose Dirceu, were sentenced in November to more than 10 years in prison for running a political bribery scheme in which congressmen received monthly payments to vote for legislation proposed by Lula's minority government.
The case, heard by Brazil's Supreme Court, gripped Brazil for months, bringing an unprecedented level of accountability to a country long used to widespread corruption.
Lula was not charged in the scandal. He has repeatedly denied any knowledge of the vote-buying scheme and has even suggested it never existed. Though Lula remains Brazil's most popular politician, the convictions have tarnished the memory of his time in office and marred his legacy.
Among the more serious accusations he made, Valerio said Lula authorized loans from state banks to the Workers' Party that provided the funds to bribe politicians.
(Reporting by Ana Flor and Anthony Boadle; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama and Cynthia Osterman)
World
Brazil
Tweet this
Link this
Share this
Digg this
Email
Reprints
We welcome comments that advance the story through relevant opinion, anecdotes, links and data. If you see a comment that you believe is irrelevant or inappropriate, you can flag it to our editors by using the report abuse links. Views expressed in the comments do not represent those of Reuters. For more information on our comment policy, see http://blogs.reuters.com/fulldisclosure/2010/09/27/toward-a-more-thoughtful-conversation-on-stories/
Comments (0)
Be the first to comment on reuters.com.
Add yours using the box above.
Edition:
U.S.
Arabic
Argentina
Brazil
Canada
China
France
Germany
India
Italy
Japan
Latin America
Mexico
Russia
Spain
United Kingdom
Back to top
Reuters.com
Business
Markets
World
Politics
Technology
Opinion
Money
Pictures
Videos
Site Index
Legal
Bankruptcy Law
California Legal
New York Legal
Securities Law
Support & Contact
Support
Corrections
Connect with Reuters
Twitter
Facebook
LinkedIn
RSS
Podcast
Newsletters
Mobile
About
Privacy Policy
Terms of Use
AdChoices
Copyright
Our Flagship financial information platform incorporating Reuters Insider
An ultra-low latency infrastructure for electronic trading and data distribution
A connected approach to governance, risk and compliance
Our next generation legal research platform
Our global tax workstation
Thomsonreuters.com
About Thomson Reuters
Investor Relations
Careers
Contact Us
Thomson Reuters is the world's largest international multimedia news agency, providing investing news, world news, business news, technology news, headline news, small business news, news alerts, personal finance, stock market, and mutual funds information available on Reuters.com, video, mobile, and interactive television platforms. Thomson Reuters journalists are subject to an Editorial Handbook which requires fair presentation and disclosure of relevant interests.
NYSE and AMEX quotes delayed by at least 20 minutes. Nasdaq delayed by at least 15 minutes. For a complete list of exchanges and delays, please click here.