Brazilian ex-president Lula faces fresh corruption charges

RIO DE JANEIRO, April 30 (Xinhua) -- Brazil's Chief Prosecution Office denounced on Monday former President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva to the Supreme Federal Court for fresh corruption charges.

It also denounced Lula's finance minister Antonio Palocci and planning minister Paulo Bernardo, and Senator Gleisi Hoffmann, current leader of the Workers' Party that Lula founded for the same accusations.

According to the Prosecution Office, construction company Odebrecht promised 40 million U.S. dollars to Lula in exchange for political action to benefit the company, which then reportedly took advantage of a better credit line from the Brazilian Development Bank (BNDES) to do business in Angola.

It noted that the case was based on the testimonies of Odebrecht executives, who provided evidence and documents such as spreadsheets and messages.

Lula was jailed on April 7 and is serving a 12-year sentence for several graft charges.

Hoffmann and Bernardo reportedly received bribes of 5 million reals (1.43 million dollars) disguised as election donations.

The Workers' Party released a statement saying that Chief Prosecutor Raquel Dodge has been "acting irresponsibly by making formal denouncements based on testimonies of criminals, given in exchange for financial and legal benefits."

The party accused the Prosecution Office of trying to criminalize it. Enditem