Former prosecutor Deltan Dallagnol, this Wednesday in Brasilia. Andre Borges (EFE)
Former Brazilian prosecutor Deltan Dallagnol, who managed to jail President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva by working at the helm of Operation Lava Jato, saw his fledgling political career cut short. For many Brazilians he has become an anti-corruption hero, and in the last elections he was elected MP with a record number of votes. However, his recently launched political career was short-lived: judges at the Superior Electoral Tribunal unanimously decided on Tuesday to annul his mandate, believing he had committed several irregularities.
First, Dallagnol resigned from the office of public prosecutor of the Republic when he was investigated in 15 administrative proceedings. In addition, he had previously been convicted of irregular spending on diets and travel by other Operation Lava Jato members. For the judges, Dallagnol attempted to circumvent the law preventing convicts from running for elections and ran as a proxy to avoid possible future sentences. The former prosecutor can appeal the decision, but it has immediate effect for the time being and he cannot return to the Chamber of Deputies.
The former prosecutor expressed his anger in a statement, saying millions of Brazilians were silenced “with the stroke of a pen and with disregard for law and justice.” “I am outraged by the unprecedented vendetta taking place in Brazil against police officers who dared to fight corruption. But no obstacle will stop me from continuing to fight for the meaning of my life, to serve God and the Brazilian people,” he added.
The fifteen investigations Dallagnol had pending before the judiciary include controversial allegations against the Supreme Court for alleged complacency over corruption or the most sensitive issue: his collaboration with then-Judge Sérgio Moro to create optimal prison conditions for Lula. The talks between Dallagnol and Moro, reported at the time by digital newspaper The Intercept, triggered an earthquake in Brazilian politics as they revealed that Lava Jato’s prosecutors and judge had worked together to corner Lula. Previously, Dallagnol was involved in various controversies.
He made his national-level debut in 2016 when he gave a PowerPoint presentation in which all the arrows in the diagram pointed to the left leader’s name as he filed a complaint against Lula for alleged corruption crimes. It quickly became meme fodder due to its simplicity. From then on, Dallagnol was the target of Brazilian progressives, who accused him of persecuting the former president, and a hero to conservative Brazil. The young prosecutor, a staunch evangelical defender of the traditional family, toured the country like a superstar, publishing books and lecturing for money on a possible Brazil without the burden of corruption and impunity.
His will to lead always aroused suspicion among many colleagues in the judiciary. The former prosecutor even proposed the creation and management of a Lava Jato Foundation, funded with resources salvaged from the hole in the Petrobras oil company. The Supreme Court rejected the idea, calling it a departure from the role of prosecutors, recalling that the management of public funds is the sole responsibility of the state. With every criticism, Dallagnol refuted his followers that the system did not allow any changes. The strategy worked and his popularity grew like foam. Over time, he amassed political capital that earned him nearly 345,000 votes in last year’s election, making him the most-elected MP in Paraná state.
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The petition to have his seat removed from Parliament came from Lula’s Labor Party (PT) and allied forces running together in the election, and was met with irony by various left-wing politicians. Justice Minister Flávio Dino, who has become a rising star on social media, commented on the annulment on Twitter with a Bible verse: “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be content,” he wrote, dedicating it to Lula. The president, who for a long time threw arrows at Moro and Dallagnol almost every day, has not commented for the time being.
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