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Brazilian state court sends Lula case to federal judge in Petrobras probe

Xinhua, March 15, 2016 Adjust font size:

A judge with the state court in Sao Paulo on Monday ruled that the corruption charges against Brazil's former President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva must be sent to a federal judge in charge of a corruption probe.

Referring to the demand from Sao Paulo prosecutors for Lula to be remanded in custody, Maria Priscilla Ernandes Veiga, a judge of the Fourth Penal Court of Sao Paulo, said the case should be analyzed by Sergio Moro who is in charge of the federal probe into Petrobras, the state-owned oil giant.

Veiga said the charges against Lula are part of the investigation into the Petrobras corruption scandal that has involved many senior executives and officials.

However, the federal court of Parana, to which Moro belongs, said on Monday that it has not received any documents concerning the charges against Lula and did not know when this would happen.

Sao Paulo prosecutors have demanded preventive arrest of Lula, who faces money laundering charges, to prevent him from mobilizing support to influence the legal process, claiming that there is "clear probability of victims and witnesses being threatened."

They also called for the arrest of Lula's wife Marisa Leticia and his son Lulinha.

Lula has denied the charges, saying that they "had no basis in reality".

According to the transcript, which was released on Monday, of Lula's first interrogation by federal investigators on March 4, Lula said he had done nothing wrong and he would expect an apology from investigators once his name had been cleared.

"I will be a candidate for presidency in 2018. Many people have insulted me time and time again. They will need courage to find me ineligible to stand," said the former president, who has been mentor of President Dilma Rousseff.

Political tension has mounted in Brazil recently.

Rousseff is under pressure as lower house Speaker Eduardo Cunha is expected to form a commission to begin impeachment proceedings over allegations of fiscal mismanagement this week.

Mass protests broke out across the country on Sunday over corruption and economic downturn. Endi