ITA: Justice decrees bankruptcy of the airline – 07/17/2023 – Market

The Justice of São Paulo declared bankruptcy of the company Itapemirim Transportes Aéreos, known as ITA. The determination is from last Tuesday (11), but was published this Monday (17).

The airline, owned by the owner of Viação Itapemirim, Sidnei Piva de Jesus, suddenly suspended flights and other activities in December 2021. At the time, Procon-SP estimated that the decision harmed 133 thousand passengers.

Judge João de Oliveira Rodrigues Filho’s decision was made at the request of one of Ita’s creditors, Travel Technology Interactive do Brasil. The document was first released by the specialized website Diário do Transporte.

The magistrate appointed Exm Partners as the trustee of ITA. The lawyer in charge will be Eduardo Scarpellini.

Among the office’s obligations are selling the assets of the company’s bankrupt estate and delivering, within 60 days, a plan to comply with the company’s commitments. You will also need to submit the list of ITA’s creditors. Creditors have until August 1 to file claims with the court.

A Sheet contacted the Itapemirim Group using the e-mail address provided on the company’s website, but had not heard back until the publication of this report. Old company phone numbers no longer work.

The report also tried to contact the Sumatra agency, which reports providing advice to the airline, but the contact information provided on the advisory portal is out of date.

Since it stopped operating in 2021, ITA has no website or communication channels.

The Itapemirim Group of road transport was declared bankrupt in September 2022 by the Justice of São Paulo. The company’s tax debts amounted to R$ 2.8 billion at the time. The EXM Partners office also manages the company’s bankrupt estate, which brings together brands such as Viação Itapemirim and Viação Kaissara.

Since then, the company’s lines have been operated by Suzantur, from ABC Paulista, under a new company called Viação Nova Itapemirim.

The founder of the Itapemirim Group, Sidnei Piva de Jesus, is being investigated by the Public Ministry on suspicion of embezzling Itapemirim resources to launch the airline. Since then, he has been monitored using an electronic ankle bracelet as determined by judge Luciana Menezes Scorza.

The magistrate also removed Piva from the command of the Itapemirim group and ordered the retention of the businessman’s passport.