MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Prosecutors greenlight Rocha's reinstatement as Governor of Brasilia

Rocha's return to office does not jeopardize the investigation, Deputy Prosecutor Santos argued

Brazil's Attorney General's Office (PGR) sent a note Friday to the Supreme Court (STF) expressing its opinion in favor of reinstating Ibaneis Rocha as Governor of the Federal District, Agencia Brasil reported. Rocha was removed by STF Justice Alexandre De Moraes for 90 days after Jan. 8 riots. The suspension thus ends on April 9.

Deputy Prosecutor Carlos Frederico Santos, who heads the group investigating the uprising, understands that Rocha's return to office will not damage to the inquiry.

“Currently the requirements of the precautionary measure of removal from public office are not met, notwithstanding future analysis regarding the existence or not of evidence for criminal accountability,” Santos wrote.

The removal of the governor for 90 days was granted to investigate his alleged omission and those of other officials in the containment of violent acts in Brasilia.

After his removal, Rocha said he respected De Moraes' decision and reiterated his “faith in justice and democratic institutions.”

In the hours after the riots, Rocha had taken action against Brasilia's Security Secretary Anderson Torres, who had been federal Justice Minister under then-President Jair Bolsonaro until Dec. 31. He was vacationing in Florida by Jan. 8 just one week after taking over his new position, from which he was sacked by Rocha before his own suspension. Unlike Bolsonaro, Torres did return to Brazil and is under arrest. During the investigations, evidence was collected from his home regarding plans for a coup d'état.

To account for that fining and other issues related to the Jan. 8 events, De Moraes ruled Friday that Torres is to testify next Thursday (March 16) through a videoconference from Military Police barracks in Brasilia where he is detained.

The hearing will take place as a part of the process opened by the Superior Electoral Court (TSE) -which De Moraes chairs- to ascertain the legality of then-President Jair Bolsonaro's meeting in July last year with ambassadors to question the trustworthiness of electronic voting machines used in the South American country. The draft found earlier this year was included in the process at the request of PDT, a party that contests the legality of the meeting.

De Moraes also explained that Torres will testify as a witness and has the right to both remain silent and not self-incriminate. Torres' testimony is one of the steps authorized by TSE Justice Benedito Gonçalves in the case against Bolsonaro for his meeting with the diplomats.

Commenting on the case on social media before being arrested, Torres said the document was leaked “out of context.”

(Source: Agencia Brasil)