May 30 The Brazilian interim government’s new minister tasked with combating corruption was heard on leaked audio tapes criticizing the sprawling graft investigation at state-run oil company Petrobras and advising the Senate leader caught up in the probe.
Globo TV on Sunday aired a partial recording of a late February meeting between new Transparency Minister Fabiano Silveira, Senate leader Renan Calheiros and Sergio Machado, an ex-senator and former head of the transportation arm of Petrobras.
Machado, who is under investigation in the Petrobras case, has since turned state’s witness and secretly recorded the meeting with Silveira and Calheiros.
Silveira is heard advising Calheiros on how he should respond to the investigation against him by Brazilian federal prosecutors. At the time of the recording, Silveira was a counselor on Brazil’s National Justice Counsel, a watchdog agency over the judiciary.
In its report, Globo TV also said some audio indicated that Silveira on several occasions spoke with prosecutors in charge of the Petrobras case to find out what information they might have on Calheiros, which he reported back to the Senate leader.
Silveira is also heard saying prosecutors were “totally lost.”
Leave a Reply