In an official note, Brazil’s Ministry of Justice informed that, on February 23, the United States judiciary granted a request by the New York City District Attorney’s office that evidence forwarded to the ministry in November, under the terms of the Agreement on Legal Assistance in Penal Matters (MLAT) between Brazil and the US, be shared with the Joint Parliamentary Investigatory Commission (CPMI) on the Post Office.
The documents include the accounts open by adman Duda Mendonça, who was responsible for President Lula’s media campaign in the last presidential contest. According to Mendoça, he was advised to open an account overseas so he could receive close to US$ 5 million for work he had done for the PT (Workers Party), but using money that was not in the books.
The note, which was signed by the national secretary of Justice, Cláudia Chagas, and senator Delcídio Amaral (PT party, Mato Grosso do Sul state), who heads the CPMI, goes on to say that "the decision is the outcome of negotiations conducted by representatives of the CPMI on the Post Office and the Ministries of Justice and Foreign Relations in a series of efforts along these lines, including a recent mission to the United States."
According to the note, the members of the commission "will have access to the documents in the possession of the Ministry of Justice’s Department of Asset Recovery and International Legal Cooperation (DRCI)."
The note ends with the affirmation that "the decision constitutes an important advance in the comprehension of the constitutional role of the parliamentary investigatory commissions and marks an evolution in the cooperation between the two countries in the fight against corruption and money-laundering."
Agência Brasil
