In a major development, Brazil's Federal Police have launched an investigation into a suspected billion-dollar scheme involving the irregular release of government payment orders, known as precatórios. The probe, which began at the National Council of Justice (CNJ) and was deepened at the Regional Federal Court of the 1st Region (TRF-1) in Brasília, has uncovered significant irregularities in the judicial system.
Precatórios are formal documents issued by a judge when an individual or entity successfully sues the government and all appeals are exhausted. They represent the government's official acknowledgment of the debt. However, investigators found that judges from five different court divisions at TRF-1 issued these payment orders for 2025 and 2026 without properly recording the case closure dates. This means the orders were issued prematurely, while the government still had the legal right to appeal the debts, a clear violation of the law.
According to the TRF-1's internal oversight body, the Corregedoria, the situation was even more alarming. Evidence suggests that these precatórios were being sold to investment funds even before the judges officially issued them. At least two of the funds involved were administered by companies already under investigation for fraud related to Banco Master: Reag and Trustee DTVM. This connection has raised serious questions about the potential manipulation of the judicial process for financial gain.
The investigation has already led to significant financial consequences. The CNJ canceled payments totaling R$ 3.5 billion due to suspected irregularities. The majority of these canceled payments were linked to cases brought by private hospitals seeking updates to the values in the SUS (Unified Health System) table. Following this, the TRF-1 took further action, canceling hundreds of precatórios that amounted to nearly R$ 11 billion in total.
Despite the scale of the alleged scheme, the TRF-1 has not punished any of the judges involved. Instead, the court issued a recommendation for judges to pay closer attention to the rules. The case has now been escalated to the Federal Police's Directorate for Combating Organized Crime. This specialized unit is tasked with investigating the suspicions of manipulation and direction of judicial decisions, as well as the potential involvement of lawyers and investment funds, some of which have ties to Banco Master.
For their part, the companies involved have responded. Trustee DTVM stated that its investment fund purchased the precatórios in accordance with current legislation and that it has not received any payment from the Union for these titles. Reag, the other company implicated, declined to comment on the matter. The investigation continues as authorities work to unravel the full extent of this complex financial and judicial scandal.
Based on reporting from g1.