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Former bank director convicted of corruption extradited to Brazil

Xinhua, October 24, 2015 Adjust font size:

A former marketing director of the state-owned Banco do Brasil, convicted of participating in a vote buying scheme, was extradited to Brazil Friday from Italy.

Henrique Pizzolato fled to Italy to avoid serving a 12-year sentence for embezzlement, criminal associations and money laundering in the Mensalao scheme during ex-President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva's presidency.

He managed to leave Brazil by using the documents of a dead brother, but was found by the Interpol in the beginning of 2014. After negotiations, the Italian government agreed to extradite him to Brazil to serve his sentence.

After a flight where other passengers booed and hissed at him, Pizzolato arrived in Sao Paulo and was later transferred to Brasilia. He will serve his sentence at the Papuda Prison, where other people convicted of participating in the same corruption scheme are also jailed.

Earlier, Brazil's former chief of staff in the Lula administration Jose Dirceu was also tried on corruption charges and sentenced to 11 years in prison for the Mensalao scheme, which involved payments to members of Congress for their votes. Endi