Brazil Supreme Federal Tribunal (STF) Justice Alexandre de Moraes on Thursday demanded an investigation into fellow Justice André Mendonça for “abuse of authority” after Mendonça unsealed a police report with alleged messages between de Moraes and an arrested banker accused of corruption.
The situation has prompted what local and international outlets are now describing as a “civil war” within Brazil’s top court. STF Chief Justice Edson Fachin has demanded explanations from those involved in de Moraes’ allegations amid the ongoing judiciary crisis.
Justice André Mendonça is one of the STF judges currently overseeing the “Banco Master” case, a large corruption scandal in Brazil involving allegations of financial fraud at the eponymous São Paulo-based bank. Brazilian banker Daniel Vorcaro, currently in police custody, is one of the main individuals linked to the broad corruption allegations.
The Banco Master case has since then reportedly expanded to also investigate further corruption allegations linked to Brazil’s largest criminal gang, the Primeiro Comando da Capital (First Capital Command, or PCC), a U.S.-designated Specially Designated Global Terrorist (SDGT) and Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO).
This week, and as part of the ongoing investigations, Justice Mendonça unsealed a report from Brazil’s Federal Police (PF) examining alleged WhatsApp text messages recovered from Vorcaro’s phone between the detained banker and a device allegedly attributed to Justice de Moraes. According to the BBC, the device was retrieved by officers during Vorcaro’s detention. Mendonça reportedly requested Brazil’s Prosecutor General Paulo Gonet to analyze and comment on the police report.
On Thursday, Alexandre de Moraes accused fellow high court Justice Mendonça of “abuse of authority” and demanded an investigation into his actions, presenting the formal request before the head of the STF, Justice Edson Fachin. In the request, de Moraes reportedly alleged that Mendonça had incurred in “possible irregularities” in his conducting of the broader corruption case and its corresponding police operations.
Per Jovem Pan, de Moraes said the case’s documentation presents “strong evidence of administrative misconduct, abuse of authority, and breach of judicial impartiality” allegedly committed by Justice Mendonça. Justice de Moraes reportedly claimed that Mendonça “usurped” police authority in the handling of the investigations for “political and personal motives,” pointing to an alleged “loss of impartiality” by Mendonça.
Additionally, de Moraes reportedly requested that the investigation into Mendonça unfold under the framework of the still-active inquiry against “fake news.” Alexandre de Moraes, a self-styled “anti-fake news” crusader, has used that inquiry since 2019 to justify a pervasive persecution and censorship campaign against conservative voices in Brazil — including former President Jair Bolsonaro.
Justice Fachin rejected the requested “fake news” inquiry inclusion on Friday morning and instead forwarded de Moraes’ complaint against Mendonça directly to his own desk. Fachin gave Mendonça and Prosecutor General Paulo Gonet a five-day deadline to respond to allegations presented by Alexandre de Moraes.
Furthermore, Fachin vowed on Friday to conclude the controversial “fake news” inquiry, reportedly promising a “firm, proportional, and rigorous response” to the ongoing crisis at the STF speaking alongside socialist President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva during an official visit to the Brazilian presidential palace.
“The facts are being investigated. This presidency will follow the procedures established by the Constitution and the law. We will do what is right, in the manner and within the timeframe required by the legal system,” Fachin reportedly said on Friday morning, according to Metrópoles.
“The institutions of the Republic must be preserved, especially in times of heightened tension. No authority stands above the Constitution. No branch of government stands above the law. And no circumstantial interest can override the integrity of the rule of law,” he continued.
President Lula reportedly affirmed in remarks during Justice Fachin’s visit that “no one, in the name of democracy, can use their position for personal gain. Everyone must be subject to the same procedures.” According to Poder 360, Lula did not directly mention Alexandre de Moraes by name.
“As president of the Republic, I am committed to making a superhuman effort to ensure that Brazilian society does not lose hope, faith, and trust in the institutions responsible for guaranteeing the functioning of Brazil’s democratic system and the rule of law,” Lula reportedly said.
Neither Alexandre de Moraes, nor André Mendonça, nor Prosecutor General Paulo Gonet has publicly commented on Justice Fachin’s Friday morning announcements at press time.
Christian K. Caruzo is a Venezuelan writer and documents life under socialism. You can follow him on Twitter here.