Brazilian police rule out foul play in death of corruption case judge

BRASILIA, Jan. 10 (Xinhua) -- Brazil's Federal Police said Wednesday it has ruled out foul play in the death last year of a top judge overseeing the country's biggest corruption case ever.

Teori Zavascki, a Supreme Federal Court (STF) judge in charge of Operation Car Wash, a wide-reaching investigation into graft at the highest levels of the Brazilian government, died last January when a small plane with him on board plunged into the ocean.

Evidence suggests the crash was caused by human error, not sabotage, said Rubens Maleiner, the police commissioner in charge of the investigation, who met with STF chief justice Carmen Lucia to present the results of the police report.

"The possibility of an intentional act against the flight was quite explored through various forensic tests and diverse investigative measures, and nothing to that effect was found," Maleiner told Lucia.

"On the contrary, the elements we have so far all point to an unintentional, tragic, unfortunate ending for the flight," Maleiner said.

According to Maleiner, investigators believe there was an human error in maneuvering the aircraft toward the landing strip in Paraty, a small coastal town and popular tourist destination in Rio de Janeiro State.

The plane crash on Jan. 19 that killed everyone on board, including three other passengers and the pilot, immediately sparked suspicion from the public.

Investigations into the case have been conducted separately by the Federal Police, the Brazilian Air Force and the Federal Prosecution Office. All three probes are still inconclusive.

"The investigation continues, it's always important to remember that. Anything we say here is provisional. It can eventually be modified, but it (the investigation) is at a very advanced stage," Maleiner said. Enditem