A leading ally of Brazil's leftist icon and ex-president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva was sentenced Wednesday to 23 years in prison for his part in a giant corruption scheme that has shaken the country's elite.
Jose Dirceu, a former chief of staff under Lula and a co-founder with the ex-president of the Workers' Party, was sentenced for "crimes of corruption, money laundering an membership of a criminal group," Judge Sergio Moro said in the sentencing document.
The sentence of 23 years and three months can be appealed.
Prosecutors say Dirceu, 70, was a ringleader of a vast scam centered on state-oil company Petrobras in which contractors paid bribes to receive inflated contracts, and stolen money was funneled to politicians and political parties.
Another 10 people were sentenced along with Dirceu, including Workers' Party former treasurer Joao Vaccari Neto, who was given nine years prison.
The hefty sentence against Dirceu was the latest blow struck by Moro, who heads the Petrobras investigation, known as Operation Car Wash.
Dozens of top executives and politicians at both the Workers' Party and its rivals have been charged or probed with involvement in the scheme, which flourished for much of Lula's 2003-2010 presidency.
The scandal has unfolded in parallel with the fall from power of president Dilma Rousseff, who took over from Lula. She was suspended from office last week for an impeachment trial, potentially ending 13 years of Workers' Party rule.
Rousseff, facing impeachment on charges of government accounting misdeeds, is not accused of corruption personally but is being investigated for possible obstruction of justice.
Lula faces a corruption case related to the Petrobras scandal and is being probed for an allegedly much wider role in the scheme.
Others facing probes include several members of the new government headed by acting president Michel Temer, who took over from Rousseff after her suspension.
A leading ally of Brazil’s leftist icon and ex-president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva was sentenced Wednesday to 23 years in prison for his part in a giant corruption scheme that has shaken the country’s elite.
Jose Dirceu, a former chief of staff under Lula and a co-founder with the ex-president of the Workers’ Party, was sentenced for “crimes of corruption, money laundering an membership of a criminal group,” Judge Sergio Moro said in the sentencing document.
The sentence of 23 years and three months can be appealed.
Prosecutors say Dirceu, 70, was a ringleader of a vast scam centered on state-oil company Petrobras in which contractors paid bribes to receive inflated contracts, and stolen money was funneled to politicians and political parties.
Another 10 people were sentenced along with Dirceu, including Workers’ Party former treasurer Joao Vaccari Neto, who was given nine years prison.
The hefty sentence against Dirceu was the latest blow struck by Moro, who heads the Petrobras investigation, known as Operation Car Wash.
Dozens of top executives and politicians at both the Workers’ Party and its rivals have been charged or probed with involvement in the scheme, which flourished for much of Lula’s 2003-2010 presidency.
The scandal has unfolded in parallel with the fall from power of president Dilma Rousseff, who took over from Lula. She was suspended from office last week for an impeachment trial, potentially ending 13 years of Workers’ Party rule.
Rousseff, facing impeachment on charges of government accounting misdeeds, is not accused of corruption personally but is being investigated for possible obstruction of justice.
Lula faces a corruption case related to the Petrobras scandal and is being probed for an allegedly much wider role in the scheme.
Others facing probes include several members of the new government headed by acting president Michel Temer, who took over from Rousseff after her suspension.
