Vaza Jato, roughly meaning Car Wash Leaks (a word play with "Operation Car Wash" and "Leaks" - Lava Jato and Vaza, in Portuguese), is the term used by the Brazilian press for leaked conversations in the Telegram app about the actions, decisions and positions of officials conducting investigations for Operation Car Wash (Lava Jato). These officials include former judge Sergio Moro[1] and prosecutor Deltan Dallagnol.[2][3] The conversations were reported by the journalist Glenn Greenwald of The Intercept Brasil and by Brazilian conservative magazine Veja in June 2019.[4][5][6]

The transcripts of the private chats[7] would indicate that Moro provided insider information to prosecutors, assisting the Federal Prosecutor's Office (MPF) in building cases, as well as directing the prosecution, requesting operations against relatives of witnesses, suggesting modification in the phases of the Lava Jato operation. They also showed agility in new operations, strategic advice, providing informal clues, and resource suggestions to the MPF to convict the former Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva on corruption charges.[8][9][10]

The leaks had wide repercussions. Sergio Moro, the Lava Jato task force and the MPF, to defend themselves against the accusations, questioned the authenticity and origin of the data.[11][12]

Chronology

On June 9, 2019, The Intercept Brasil published three articles showing internal discussions, coordinated by prosecutor Dallagnol, in collaboration with former judge Moro. The three articles were summarized in two articles into English: Part 1[13] and Part 2.[14] The exchanges were highly controversial, politicized and legally dubious attitudes of the Lava Jato task force.[15] The Intercept, in this phase, explains how and why they are publishing private chats about Lava Jato and Sergio Moro.[14] The reporters also show that Lava Jato prosecutors secretly plotted to prevent Lula from interviewing before the elections for fear that he would help ‘elect Haddad’ and, additionally, that Dallagnol doubted the evidence against Lula[13] and Petrobras' bribery hours before the denunciation of the triplex.[16][17]

In Part 4, the conversation shows that the judge, not the prosecutors, was in charge of the investigation. He suggested that investigators change the order of phases of the Lava Jato, called for agility in new operations, gave strategic advice and informal clues, anticipated a decision he would rectify, criticized and suggested appeals to the Public Prosecutor's Office and scolded Dallagnol.[18]

Investigative reports surfaced in the midst of a deep political, economic and social crisis that Brazil is going through. For years, various sectors of society have denounced deviations, abuses and unconstitutional actions committed by the Lava Jato operation.[19] The following day, conservative newspaper O Globo and other media attacked the veracity of some facts in the article.[20]

On June 12, 2019, Greenwald published the entire reserved dialogues, from October 2015 to September 2017, relevant to the report published on June 9 (Part 5).[21][22] Telegram messages leaked between Moro and Dallagnol, now included Luis Fux, Minister of Justice of the Supreme Federal Court. The messages show evidence of pressure from Moro, current Justice Minister of Jair Bolsonaro, to speed up the ruling despite the lack of evidence. Moro stated, in order to calm down the prosecutors about an appeal: "In Fux we trust".[23]

Due to the political-party bias implicit in the dissemination of messages, on June 14, 2019, left-wing parties asked for the resignation of the Minister of Justice. Moro responded that he will not step down from his post and that he was the target of a cyber attack and that the country is facing "a crime in progress", promoted by a large professional criminal organization.[24] On the same day, a Congressman from Bolsonaro's party explicitly was threatening Greenwald with arrest and/or deportation for reporting on the "massive improprieties of Bolsonaro's Justice Minister and the prosecutors who imprisoned Lula".[25] Reacting to the Vaza Jato exposé, Rep. Ro Khanna and Sen. Bernie Sanders joined the Free Lula movement and each raised concerns over Lula's continued imprisonment and the Bolsonaro government's involvement in the scandal.[26]

On June 12, 2019, Brazilian conservative magazine Veja published a report accusing Moro of “illegally” steering prosecutors as they worked to convict Brazilian politicians and "overstepping his role as judge," claiming that its journalists had spent a fortnight pouring over nearly 650,000 leaked messages between officials involved in the investigation, and concluded the former judge was guilty of serious “irregularities.” Following the report, Moro released a statement condemning “the distorted and sensationalist diffusion of supposed messages obtained by criminal means.”[6][27]

The Intercept and the Associated Press reported that the FBI requested case documents about Lula's investigation before the case became public, and Moro authorized the information to be sent to the Justice Department through unofficial channels.[28] On August 20, 2019, US representative Hank Johnson (D–GA) and his colleagues sent a letter to then Attorney General William Barr stating that The Intercept published leaked communications between Judge Moro and senior prosecutors that "reveal close collaboration" and "reports of collusive actions aimed at building a case against former president Lula”.[29] Rep. Johnson requested the DOJ to inform if the "DOJ agents aware of collusive actions involving Judge Moro...".[30]

The Brazilian Congress identified at least 13 FBI agents involved with Moro and Dallagnol to collect secret court files.[31] In exchange for these files and other information, that would help the prosecution of Brazilian companies under the U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA),[32] U.S. authorities would share part of the fines to Moro and the Brazilian prosecutorial authorities involved with the Lava Jato operation, in order to the create a private foundation totally administered and controlled by the same Brazilian prosecutors.[33]

In July, 2020, 77 members of Congress sent a letter to their U.S. counterparts, requesting that the Americans “adopt the appropriate legislative measures” and “hold those responsible agents and officials accountable.”.[34] In July 2021, Congressman Hank Johnson requested from Attorney General, Merrick Garland to inform the Congress what was the role of the DOJ agents in the Car Wash operation and what role DOJ played in the political persecution of Lula da Silva. Congressman Johnson also additionally, informed the Attorney General that Rep. Johnson had never received an adequate response from the Barr DOJ about the issue his letter sent in August 2019.[35]

See also

References

  1. ↑ McCoy, Terrence. "He's the 'hero' judge who oversaw Brazil's vast Car Wash corruption probe. Now he's facing his own scandal". Washington Post. Retrieved 2019-10-15.
  2. ↑ Phillips, Dom (2019-07-08). "Bolsonaro minister who jailed Lula takes leave after leaks cast doubt on impartiality". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2019-10-15.
  3. ↑ "Carwash Scandal Sparks Calls for Brazil's Moro to Resign". Bloomberg.com. 10 June 2019. Retrieved 2019-10-15.
  4. ↑ Fishman, Andrew; Martins, Rafael Moro; Demori, Leandro; Greenwald, Glenn; Audi, Amanda (2019-06-17). ""Their Little Show": Exclusive: Brazilian Judge in Car Wash Corruption Case Mocked Lula's Defense and Secretly Directed Prosecutors' Media Strategy During Trial". The Intercept. Retrieved 2019-10-15.
  5. ↑ Greenwald, Glenn; Pougy, Victor (2019-07-05). "Scandal for Bolsonaro's Justice Minister Sergio Moro Grows as The Intercept Partners With Brazil's Largest Magazine for New Exposé". The Intercept. Retrieved 2019-10-15.
  6. 1 2 "Novos diálogos revelam que Moro orientava ilegalmente ações da Lava Jato". VEJA.com (in Brazilian Portuguese). Retrieved 2019-09-30.
  7. ↑ "Leia todas as reportagens que o Intercept e parceiros produziram para a Vaza Jato". The Intercept Brasil (in Brazilian Portuguese). 2020-01-21.
  8. ↑ Fishman, Andrew; Martins, Rafael Moro; Demori, Leandro; Santi, Alexandre de; Greenwald, Glenn (2019-06-09). "Breach of Ethics: Exclusive: Leaked Chats Between Brazilian Judge and Prosecutor Who Imprisoned Lula Reveal Prohibited Collaboration and Doubts Over Evidence". The Intercept. Retrieved 2019-10-15.
  9. ↑ "Sergio Moro investigado por violações de direitos humanos". Extra Classe (in Brazilian Portuguese). 2019-07-11. Retrieved 2019-10-15.
  10. ↑ Cittadino, Gisele (2018), Cittadino, Gisele; Proner, Carol; Ricobom, Gisele; Dornelles, João Ricardo (eds.), "The multiple and perverse meanings of Sérgio Moro's sentence", Comments on a notorious verdict, the trial of Lula, CLACSO, pp. 62–64, doi:10.2307/j.ctvn96gjp.15, JSTOR j.ctvn96gjp.15
  11. ↑ Londoño, Ernesto; Casado, Letícia (2019-06-10). "Leaked Messages Raise Fairness Questions in Brazil Corruption Inquiry". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2019-10-15.
  12. ↑ "Crisis for Bolsonaro's justice minister Sergio Moro after leaks reveal that he targeted Lula for political prosecution". Boing Boing. 2019-07-06. Retrieved 2019-10-15.
  13. 1 2 Greenwald, Glenn; Pougy, Victor (2019-06-09). "Hidden Plot: Exclusive: Brazil's Top Prosecutors Who Indicted Lula Schemed in Secret Messages to Prevent His Party From Winning 2018 Election". The Intercept. Retrieved 2020-03-15.
  14. 1 2 Greenwald, Glenn; Demori, Leandro; Reed, Betsy (2019-06-09). "How and Why The Intercept Is Reporting on a Vast Trove of Materials About Brazil's Operation Car Wash and Justice Minister Sergio Moro". The Intercept. Retrieved 2020-03-15.
  15. ↑ Greenwald, Glenn; Reed, Betsy; Demori, Leandro (2019-06-09). "Como e por que o Intercept está publicando chats privados sobre a Lava Jato e Sergio Moro". The Intercept. Retrieved 2020-03-15.
  16. ↑ Martins, Rafael Moro; Demori, Leandro; Greenwald, Glenn (2019-06-09). "'Até agora tenho receio': Exclusivo: Deltan Dallagnol duvidava das provas contra Lula e de propina da Petrobras horas antes da denúncia do triplex". The Intercept. Retrieved 2020-03-15.
  17. ↑ "Brazil's justice minister accused of collaborating to jail ex-president Lula". The Irish Times. Retrieved 2020-03-23.
  18. ↑ Fishman, Andrew; Martins, Rafael Moro; Demori, Leandro; Santi, Alexandre de; Greenwald, Glenn (2019-06-09). "Breach of Ethics: Exclusive: Leaked Chats Between Brazilian Judge and Prosecutor Who Imprisoned Lula Reveal Prohibited Collaboration and Doubts Over Evidence". The Intercept. Retrieved 2020-03-15.
  19. ↑ "Documentos inéditos revelam o papel político da Lava Jato contra Lula e o PT" [Unpublished documents reveal the political role of Lava Jato against Lula and the PT]. Brasil de Fato (in Brazilian Portuguese). 9 June 2019. Retrieved 2020-03-15.
  20. ↑ "Não, esta imagem não é de um dos trechos das conversas divulgadas entre o ex-juiz Moro e o procurador da Lava Jato". Checamos (in Brazilian Portuguese). 2019-06-12. Retrieved 2020-03-15.
  21. ↑ "Novos diálogos entre Moro e Dallagnol são publicados pelo Intercept". Migalhas (in Brazilian Portuguese). 2019-06-13. Retrieved 2020-03-23.
  22. ↑ "Secret Files Show How Brazil's Elites Jailed Former President Lula and Cleared the Way for Bolsonaro". Democracy Now!. Retrieved 2020-03-23.
  23. ↑ The, NINJA (June 12, 2019). "'In Fux we trust': Nuevas revelaciones en el Vaza Jato involucran al Ministro de Justicia del Tribunal Federal Supremo". Rede NINJA (in Spanish). Retrieved 2020-03-23.
  24. ↑ ""Se quiserem publicar tudo, publiquem. Não tem problema", desafia Moro". EXAME (in Brazilian Portuguese). Retrieved 2020-03-23.
  25. ↑ "After Exposing 'Corrupted' Brazilian Government, Journalist Glenn Greenwald Faces Deportation Warning and Death Threats". Common Dreams. Retrieved 2021-02-11.
  26. ↑ "After Exposing 'Corrupted' Brazilian Government, Journalist Glenn Greenwald Faces Deportation Warning and Death Threats". Common Dreams. Retrieved 2020-03-23.
  27. ↑ correspondent, Tom Phillips Latin America (2019-07-05). "Brazil: calls grow for Bolsonaro ally to quit after 'devastating' report on leaks". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2019-09-30.
  28. ↑ "The FBI, the Fusion Center, and the Far Right: US creep in Brazil". Brasil Wire. 2020-05-26. Retrieved 2021-06-30.
  29. ↑ "Como a Lava Jato escondeu visita do FBI e procuradores americanos". Agência Pública (in Brazilian Portuguese). 2020-03-12. Retrieved 2021-07-01.
  30. ↑ "Rep. Johnson, Colleagues Ask DOJ for Answers on Brazil Corruption & Persecution of Former President Lula da Silva". Congressman Hank Johnson. 2019-08-21. Retrieved 2021-06-30.
  31. ↑ "How the U.S. taught Judge Moro to "take down" Lula | MR Online". mronline.org. 2021-05-08. Retrieved 2021-07-01.
  32. ↑ Estrada, Gaspard (2021-02-26). "Opinion | Operation Car Wash Was No Magic Bullet". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2021-07-01.
  33. ↑ "Alexandre de Moraes suspende acordo que estabelecia fundação da Lava Jato". Poder360 (in Brazilian Portuguese). 2019-03-15. Retrieved 2021-07-01.
  34. ↑ "Deputados da oposição denunciam ao Congresso americano atuação ilegal do FBI junto à Operação Lava Jato". Revista Fórum (in Brazilian Portuguese). 2020-07-17. Retrieved 2021-06-30.
  35. ↑ "Rep. Johnson, Colleagues Ask A.G. Garland for Answers on DOJ Role in Brazil Probe and Persecution of Former President Lula da Silva". Congressman Hank Johnson. 2021-06-07. Retrieved 2021-07-01.
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