MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Brazil, 20th judicial win for former leader Lula

Lula served more than a year in prison after being convicted in a case for which he was eventually acquitted.

Former Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva Thursday achieved his 20th judicial victory after yet another case against him was dismissed due to lack of evidence.

A Brasilia court Thursday dropped the so-called Atibaia case against Lula. According to the Workers' Party (PT) website, the former head of state's successive victories expose the lawfare (judicial persecution, use of the law as a political weapon) to which he has been subject.

Judge Pollyanna Kelly Maciel, of the twelfth Federal Criminal Court of the Federal District, Thursday denied yet again a request to reopen the case, as the Prosecutor's Office did not present any valid evidence, since the alleged documents submitted were the same ones from the Lava Jato operation in the southern city of Curitiba, which the Federal Supreme Court (STF) has already ruled to be null.

‘Because it is based on evidence annulled by the STF, the original complaint could not be ratified in a generic and unrestricted way, therefore. I repeat, the complaint could not be received and it remains in that condition because it was not indicated what valid evidence to support the accusation,'' Judge Maciel found.

The PT therefore insisted Lava Jato had no evidence against Lula, and that “the former president was unjustly imprisoned for 580 days, for not agreeing to change his dignity for his freedom. The truth is, he won!'

The Maciel decision also pointed out a statute of limitations applied to the case.
Lula had been charged with benefitting in the amount of around US $ 235,000 from Odebrecht and others for construction works carried out at a farm in Atibaia, in the state of Sao Paulo, in exchange for favoring companies being awarded contracts by the state-run oil company Petrobras. Lula had been sentenced to 12 years and 11 months in jail for this case.

A recent statement from the former union leader's defense team highlights it has never been proven that Lula has received any money from Odebrecht to pay for the renovation of the farm, which he never even owned to begin with. The document also explains that the transfer of money from Odebrecht, as claimed by the prosecution, was actually made to a director of the company, but not for works on that property. “The case was annulled by the STF and restores Lula's innocence.”

Regarding talks between Lava Jato prosecutors and former judge Sérgio Moro,, Lula's chief counselor Cristiano Zanin pointed out that 'there we saw how Justice should not be used, how its agents cannot use the power of the State to achieve political and personal objectives, among other actions.”

According to most polls, Lula would easily beat incumbent President Jair Bolsonaro in next year's elections.