Brazil billionaire surrenders to police accused of hiding evidence of corruption News
Brazil billionaire surrenders to police accused of hiding evidence of corruption

Brizillian billionaire Joesley Batista, owner of JBS [corporate website], and executive Ricardo Saud surrendered to police on Sunday in Sao Paulo for allegedly withholding evidence [Reuters report] during their plea bargain negotiation in the corruption case against President Michel Temer [Britannica profile]. Batista is accused of making “a secret recording of Temer in May which the president apparently admitted paying bribes to influential Brazilian politicians” [BBC report]. Justice Fachin revoked immunity granted to Batista and Saud through the plea bargain, and ordered their arrest for a minimum of five days for failing to proffer all information related to crimes they confessed to in the plea bargain.

Brazil has endured tumultuous times during which former presidents have been caught in scandals [JURIST report] of receiving various bribes from various businesses. Brazil Attorney General Rodrigo Janot filed charges [press release, in Portuguese] against Temer [JURIST report] for passive corruption [JURIST report].Former president Dilma Rousseff was impeached for corruption [JURIST op-ed] last year amidst a time of economic turmoil. In April, a Brazil Supreme Court [official website] justice ordered investigations [JURIST report] into eight cabinet ministers and dozens of lawmakers who are allegedly linked to the country’s so-called “car wash” bribery scheme. Last August Brazil’s Senate voted to convict Brazil’s President Dilma Rousseff on charges [JURIST op-ed] that she used improper accounting to cover-up a growing budget deficit and illegal loans from state-owned banks.