BRASILIA, Brazil, Sept. 9 (UPI) — A rapid series of conflicting rulings within Brazil’s Supreme Federal Court has triggered an institutional crisis less than a month before the country’s presidential election, with allegations of illegal surveillance, corruption and political interference dividing the court.
Supreme Court Justice Flávio Dino on Wednesday reversed the suspension of Federal Police Director-General Andrei Rodrigues and the agency’s intelligence chief, Leandro Almada. Justice André Mendonça had ordered their removal 24 hours earlier, accusing them of leading an illegal espionage network and conducting “systematic surveillance” against him.
Dino argued that removing the police leadership through an outside intervention would create “administrative chaos” and threatened to cause “irreparable damage” to urgent cases based on personal disputes with investigators.
The dispute stems from a Federal Police investigation into the collapse of Banco Master, a multibillion-dollar financial fraud case that has affected figures across Brazil’s political spectrum, the Brazilian news outlet g1 reported.
The conflict escalated when Mendonça released a report suggesting improper ties between banker Daniel Vorcaro and Justice Alexandre de Moraes, who gained international attention for rulings that barred former President Jair Bolsonaro from holding public office.
According to the report, Vorcaro sought protection and intervention from de Moraes and the Federal Police chief in an effort to halt investigations against him.
Mendonça oversees and participates in several cases with major political and social repercussions in Brazil.
In addition to the Banco Master case, which primarily affects opposition figures, Mendonça is involved in proceedings related to the alleged 2023 coup attempt and is examining suspected fraud in Brazil’s pension system, a case in which one of President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva’s sons has been linked.
As the first justice appointed to the Supreme Federal Court by former President Bolsonaro, Mendonça’s decisions frequently draw public scrutiny.
Lula adopted a cautious position on Mendonça’s decision, although his administration privately described the removal of Rodrigues, who coordinated Lula’s campaign security and is a close ally of the president, as “undue interference” in the executive branch’s authority, CNN Brasil reported.
The series of accusations involving corruption, influence peddling and political persecution has divided the country’s highest court along ideological lines and drawn the Federal Police into an intense power struggle just ahead of the Oct. 4 presidential election.
With a tight presidential race between the left-wing incumbent and right-wing Sen. Flávio Bolsonaro, judicial decisions have increasingly become political ammunition for both campaigns, the newspaper El País reported.
The Federal Police is not only headed by a close Lula ally, but also is responsible for investigating suspicious financial transactions involving people close to the Bolsonaro family as well as possible irregularities reaching the president’s inner circle.
