Rio de Janeiro Deputy Rafael Nobre Charged in Procurement Fraud Probe

The Public Ministry of Rio de Janeiro (MPRJ) filed a complaint accusing state deputy Rafael Nobre (União Brasil) of involvement in an organized‑crime scheme that fraudulently obtained public contracts. Search and seizure warrants were executed at Nobre’s office in the Assembly of Rio de Janeiro (Alerj), his residence, and other locations linked to the investigation, seizing R$ 21,000 in cash at his home and R$ 45,000 at a councilor’s house.

According to the indictment, Nobre and associate Magrão Nobre used shell companies – including Nutrifoods Refeições, Inovar Comércio, King Food Alimentos and J&G Restaurante – to channel roughly R$ 357.9 million in contracts for meals supplied to hospitals, schools and municipal secretariats in the Baixada Fluminense region. The scheme allegedly involved falsified documents, money‑laundering operations and ties to criminal factions. The MPRJ seeks the loss of parliamentary mandates and restitution of the misappropriated funds.

The operation follows a series of investigations over the past ten months that have targeted five Alerj deputies on suspicions ranging from organized crime links to illicit information leaks, highlighting a broader crackdown on corruption within Rio de Janeiro’s state legislature.