Justice minister confirms and justifies meeting with Odebrecht lawyers

Justice Minister José Eduardo Cardozo reiterated on Thursday (19) that he met with lawyers from construction firm Odebrecht early this month to address issues related to Operation Car Wash. He denied, however, that there had been any request for his interference in the court proceedings against the company's executives, who are currently facing lawsuits resulting from the operation.

He said that representatives from the company brought two topics to the meeting, one of which protected by the law as confidential. “I won't mention it just yet because it concerns an issue from another agency under the Justice Ministry, one in the field of international cooperation. The other subject concerns information constantly leaked in the investigation involving Odebrecht.

“The company Odebrecht said that over the course of Operation Car Wash information was illegally disclosed and reached the press, and this constitutes a blatant offense against the law. They say I ordered the launch of an investigation into the leaks, which is true. [The lawyers] complained that the probe wasn't being carried out appropriately by the Federal Police,” he said.

Cardozo argued he was the right person to hear about  issues related to the Federal Police, since it is subordinate to the justice minister. He noted, however, that he does not interfere with investigations. “I may not interfere with, or conduct [the investigations]. My only advice to the Federal Police is: investigate whatever you want, no matter whom it hurts, but fulfill the law.”

The minister said that no illicit proposal had been made to him. “No lawyer asked me to have someone arrested released, or to Judge Moro or the [Federal Public Prosecution Office]—not one of them, because if they did, I would have taken the applicable measures, from either the criminal or ethical perspective. I would have reported them with the Brazilian Bar Association.”

On February 19, the day before the minister's justifications were given, Federal Judge Sérgio Moro, in charge of the proceedings arising from Operation Car Wash, renewed the imprisonment of Ricardo Ribeiro Pessoa, from UTC, Eduardo Herminio Leite, Dalton dos Santos Avancini and José Ricardo Auler, from Camargo Corrêa, on charges of interfering with the investigations.

Moro described the construction companies' seeking the of politicians in behalf of the executives in jail as “intolerable”, and “a total distortion of the suitable legal process.”

According to the newspaper Folha de S. Paulo, the lawyers of UTC and Camargo Corrêa met with the justice minister to address issues related to Operation Car Wash. On Thursday (19), the minister declared on a note that he only met representatives from Odebrecht, on February 5.

Translated by Fabrício Ferreira