Brazilian Federal Court annuls Petrobras Lava Jato indictment

The 13ª Vara Federal in Curitiba ordered the dismissal of the criminal complaint filed under Operation Lava Jato that investigated alleged corruption and money‑laundering in Petrobras contracts. Judge Guilherme Roman Borges based the decision on the Supreme Court’s (STF) ruling, led by minister Dias Toffoli, that evidence derived from the Odebrecht leniency agreement and the Drousys and My Web Day B systems is invalid. Consequently, the prosecution’s core evidence was deemed inadmissible and the case was closed, though the ruling does not constitute an acquittal and the Federal Public Prosecutor’s Office may appeal.

The action involved six defendants: former Petrobras supply director Fernando Carlos Leão de Barros, consultant Luiz Fernando Volpi, intermediary Antonio Gentil Garcia Goulart, and businessmen Nilson Toshihico Nishimura, Gilmar Lopes de Freitas, and Isabel Izquierdo Mendiburo Degenring Botelho, who was accused of assisting in opening Swiss accounts. The indictment had linked the accused to alleged illicit payments amounting to millions of reais and Swiss francs tied to various consortia.

The decision marks a significant procedural setback for the Lava Jato investigation into the state oil company, highlighting the impact of recent STF jurisprudence on corruption probes.