Brazil’s Lula to Go on Trial

EghtesadOnline: Former president of Brazil, Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, is to go on trial for obstruction of justice in a case related to the scandal at state oil firm Petrobras, court documents show.

News ID: ۷۶۸۶۴۶

31 July 2016

The multibillion-dollar affair has already seen dozens of politicians and officials arrested. Lula, with six others, is accused of hampering Operation Car Wash, the investigation into the scandal. Governing Brazil from 2003 to 2011, he has denied any wrongdoing, BBC reported. The date for the trial has not yet been set. Those also charged on Friday include former senator, Delcidio Amaral, and investment banker, Andre Esteves. They have been accused of trying to prevent former Petrobras director, Nestor Cervero, from testifying in a plea bargain deal. Cervero was jailed for being the mastermind of the Petrobras scandal. It is understood that the accusation against Lula is a result of a plea bargain testimony by Amaral. In May, Brazil’s Attorney General Rodrigo Janot accused the former president of playing a key role in the Petrobras case, which is estimated to have cost the company more than $2 billion.