Part of the jewelry that members of Jair Bolsonaro’s government received as a gift from the Saudi Arabian government remained unduly in the possession of the Ministry of Mines and Energy (MME) for more than a year. Documents released in recent days by the former head of the Special Secretariat for Social Communication (Secom) Fábio Wajngarten reveal that the Assistant Cabinet for Historical Documentation of the Presidency of the Republic instructed the MME to deliver the jewels on November 3, 2021, days after the arrival of parts in the country. The guidance, however, was only complied with on November 29, 2022, when Antonio Carlos Ramos de Barros, at the time special advisor to the then Minister of Mines and Energy, Bento Albuquerque, handed over to the adjunct cabinet a box containing a wristwatch; a pair of cufflinks; a pen; a ring and a kind of rosary (masbaha). It is not yet known who entered the country with these objects, but according to Albuquerque himself stated in interviews with other press vehicles, they were part of the gifts that the Brazilian delegation that traveled to Saudi Arabia to participate in official events received from the authorities of that country. , between October 20 and 26, 2021. Another box containing a necklace, a pair of earrings, a ring, a women’s wristwatch and a pedestal in the shape of a horse was seized by Federal Revenue agents when the Brazilian delegation disembarked at the Guarulhos International Airport, in São Paulo. The seized jewels were in the backpack of the then head of the MME’s representative office in Rio de Janeiro, the military Marcos André Soeiro. Despite several attempts by the agency, the women’s jewelry remained withheld, in the possession of the Federal Revenue Service, and now serves as evidence in investigations into the case. One of the documents that Wajngarten shared on his personal Twitter account is a copy of Official Letter No. 986, from the Assistant Office of Historical Documentation of the Presidency. In it, the then chief of staff, Marcelo da Silva Vieira, explains to the MME team that “considering the current legislation […]the gifts received by the Minister of Mines and Energy [Bento Albuquerque]as representative of the President of the Republic [Jair Bolsonaro], during an official visit to the United Kingdom of Saudi Arabia fall under the condition of being forwarded to this office, for analysis regarding the incorporation into the private collection of the President of the Republic or the public collection of the Presidency of the Republic”. Written and dated on October 29, 2021, the letter was only signed by Vieira and sent to the Ministry of Mines and Energy on November 3. With the exception that, in addition to delivering the men’s jewelry for analysis, those responsible should register them using the Form for Forwarding Gifts to the President of the Republic, detailing the history of obtaining the pieces. Last Saturday (4), the Federal Revenue released a press release in which it states that, since the women’s jewelry was seized, there has been no attempt to regularize them. There was even, according to the Revenue, a substantiated request to incorporate the jewels into public property, even after guidance from the agency. Last Monday (6), the Revenue released a new note, informing that until this week it had not been aware of the entry into the country of part of the jewelry brought by the Brazilian entourage. After learning of the fact from the newspapers, the agency decided to “take the appropriate measures” to clarify what happened, informing that the action could, in theory, constitute a violation of customs legislation due to lack of declaration and collection of taxes. Brazilian legislation establishes that items worth more than US$ 1,000 are subject to taxation when they enter the national territory. In this case, in addition to paying 50% in taxes for the value of the goods, a 25% fine would apply for attempting to enter the country illegally, that is, without declaration to the customs authorities. PF and CGU investigate The Federal Police (PF) also opened an investigation to investigate the alleged illegal entry of high-value jewelry into Brazilian territory. The investigation will be conducted by the Superintendence’s Specialized Police to Combat Tax Crimes in São Paulo. The delegate responsible for taking over the investigation of the case is Adalto Ismael Rodrigues Machado, from the São Paulo Federal Police’s Office for Repression of Treasury Crimes. In addition, the Comptroller General of the Union (CGU) instituted a Preliminary Summary Investigation (IPS) to investigate the possible participation of public servants in the episode. The other side Agência Brasil asked the current managers of the Ministry of Mines and Energy why the jewels that the entourage did not deliver to the Revenue took so long to be delivered to the Assistant Cabinet for Historical Documentation. The report also questioned the Presidency about the current whereabouts of the men’s jewelry set. In response, the MME said that “the issue is being investigated by the responsible bodies – the Federal Police, the Federal Public Prosecutor’s Office and the Federal Revenue Service -, which have the broad and unrestricted collaboration of the current portfolio management”. Former head of the Special Secretariat for Social Communication (Secom) Fábio Wajngarten did not return messages from Agência Brasil in order to clarify the origin of the shared documents. After the disclosure of the allegations, former first lady Michelle Bolsonaro made a post on her Instagram account to comment on the matter. She even made fun of the case. “I have all this and I didn’t know? My God!” she wrote. Former President Jair Bolsonaro, on the other hand, denied any illegality. To CNN, he said that the jewels would go to the Presidency’s collection. “I am being accused of a gift I neither asked for nor received. You’re going too far, huh?! I’m laughing at the inappropriateness of this vexatious press. There is no illegality on my part. I never practiced illegality. See my personal corporate card. I have never withdrawn or paid a penny on that card.” In a note, the advisory of former minister Bento Albuquerque reported that the jewels were “institutional gifts intended for the Brazilian representation made up of a delegation from the Ministry of Mines and Energy – therefore, to the Brazilian State. And that, as a result, the Ministry of Mines and Energy would adopt the appropriate measures for the correct and legal forwarding of the collection received”. The statement differs from previous statements that the newspaper Folha de S.Paulo attributed to Albuquerque – according to the newspaper, previously, the former minister would have confirmed that the jewelry was a gift from the Saudi government to Michelle Bolsonaro.
Agência Brasil
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