Moraes keeps journalist in prison for more than a year, without complaint

A 60-year-old journalist from the interior of Espírito Santo was arrested for more than a year on the grounds of disseminating “fake news that attacks the Democratic Rule of Law”. The arrest took place in December 2022 by order of the minister Alexandre de Moraes and, even with the Federal Public Ministry (MPF) asking for the case to be null and void due to procedural irregularities and because there was no evidence of a crime, the reporter was kept in prison for 368 days. He was provisionally released on December 20, 2023 with the same precautionary measures imposed on prisoners on January 8.

“The journalist Jackson Rangel he was not even reported or saw his procedure archived, despite repeated petitions from the Attorney General’s Office (PGR)”, says defense lawyer Gabriel Quintão, citing that Rangel was also not heard by the Federal Police (PF). “A violation of due process, something medieval in nature,” he says.

Rangel’s arrest was requested by the Attorney General of Espírito Santo (PGJ-ES) in an irregular manner, directly to the STF, in September 2022. Moraes accepted the request, despite the lack of evidence and the illegitimacy of the State Public Ministry in carrying out the petition (read more below). As a result, the journalist could not have remained in prison, as established by the Criminal Procedure Code (CPP).

According to the CPP, a police investigation must be completed within 10 days – with the possibility of extending for another 10 – and the individual must be reported by the Public Prosecutor’s Office within five days after completion, under penalty of the case being closed. This is because the formalized complaint must contain robust evidence of a crime and be forwarded to the judge, who can accept or reject it, maintaining or not the arrest.

However, in the case of sexagenarian journalist Jackson Rangel, the MPF issued an opinion contrary to the PGJ-ES’ request and did not carry out the complaint. The agency found no evidence of a crime and also “did not recognize the legality and constitutionality of the procedure, asking for it to be archived”, explains Quintão, stating that, even with the request issued by the Public Ministry, the reporter remained in prison for more than 12 months.

“I was subjected to a regime of torture incompatible with the Constitution and international human rights treaties”, laments the man from Espírito Santo, highlighting that “the attack” was not only against him, but against freedom of the press and the Democratic State of Right. “Yes, I was a victim of undemocratic acts that violated due legal process, the constitutional order and all imaginable civilizing values,” he said in an interview with Gazeta do Povo.

A resident of Cachoeiro de Itapemirim, in the interior of Espírito Santo, Rangel has worked as a journalist for 40 years with the production of investigative, analytical and opinion reports with statewide repercussions. He is also a lawyer and businessman, owner of the newspaper Folha do ES for 35 years. “I have always acted independently, monitoring and disclosing uncomfortable facts to the powerful of the moment,” he said.

In fact, the reporter reports that he has already been the target of several legal proceedings in actions by individuals who felt aggrieved by quotations and that, in 2023 alone, he obtained a favorable ruling in at least six cases filed against him due to reports he authored. “And that’s normal,” he says. “The abnormal thing is to arrest journalists to silence them and make them unviable, something that has not been seen since the dictatorship”, he adds.

“Virulent posts” against the Supreme Court

Jackson Rangel was arrested on December 15, 2022 for allegedly spreading “fake news that attacks the Democratic Rule of Law”, vague terms that, in practice, refer to expressions of indignation and criticism of the government and the STF.

In the confidential decision presented by Moraes, to which the Gazeta do Povo report had access, the minister accepted the thesis of the attorney general of Espírito Santo that the journalist was the author of “virulent posts” against the Supreme Court in his profile on X (formerly Twitter). Among the phrases presented were “without freedom, there is no independence”, “it is a shame for one Power to take the power of another” and “there is no way for the country to move forward with this surrendered and vassal policy”.

The posts “Alexandre de Moraes achieved the feat of provoking the people and proving his power emanates from him” and “I have no doubts about the STF’s invasion today at any moment in an act of desperation by Brazilians to regain their freedoms” are also cited. The posts were made in 2022.

The complete list has nine sentences, and the document states that the commission of several crimes would be “sufficiently demonstrated”, constituting an “act of true digital terrorism”. The decision also informs that the journalist would be the target of legal proceedings due to “fake news” published by him and that the newspaper Folha do ES would be part of a “digital militia” with the aim of destabilizing democratic institutions.

Rangel was, then, one of Espírito Santo’s 27 targets in the 1st phase of the Operation Lesa Patria, which ordered his preventive detention and also the search and seizure of all electronic equipment from the communication vehicle he manages. “They destroyed my small newsroom”, laments the reporter and businessman, mentioning that the 20 computers used by employees were taken by the Federal Police (PF).

“The objective was to silence my voice, interrupt reports and create an environment of criminalization and marginalization of the newspaper”, he points out, stating that he produced articles with allegations involving various authorities in Espírito Santo and that these people have personal legal proceedings opened against the journalist due to to the texts.

“Knowing that I do not have the economic and political power of large media outlets, they insist on private actions and even direct petitions to Minister Alexandre de Moraes to marginalize and embarrass me,” says Rangel, pointing out that the state body cannot make direct petitions to the STF , since this responsibility belongs to the PGR.

MP-ES took the journalist’s case to the STF

According to the first opinion of the Federal Public Ministry (MPF), from October 2022, which requested the nullity of the case, the Espírito Santo Attorney General’s Office would not really have the competence to directly request the Supreme Court to arrest, search and seize , and breaches of the journalist’s telephone and banking confidentiality. The situation was presented in the MPF document as an “affront to the legal system” in relation to the attribution of each branch of the Public Ministry, and generated a “lack of procedural legitimacy”.

Furthermore, the MPF pointed out that the demand under analysis would also repeat an investigation already opened in the State Courts – violating the principle of criminal law that prohibits prosecuting, judging and convicting someone more than once for the same conduct.

This process, cited by the State Attorney’s Office in the direct petition to the STF as an argument for the propagation of “fake news”, deals with reports published by the journalist in 2021 regarding signs of corruption and the targeting of a tender by the government of Espírito Santo worth R$ 139 million.

At the time, confidential sources gave Rangel a flash drive with evidence of the crime. According to the journalist’s defense, the material was forwarded to the Federal Public Ministry, which recognized the need for investigation, but indicated that the investigation should take place from the Espírito Santo Public Ministry. The state prosecutor, however, closed the case on the grounds that the disclosed material would be “illegal evidence for violating electronic correspondence without a court order.”

In addition to prohibiting investigations related to signs of corruption, the prosecutor also opened a police investigation against the journalist who reported on the scandal. A councilor, a radio host and two state deputies who disclosed the flash drive evidence were also indicted.

Given the situation, the Brazilian Press Association (ABI) even questioned the STF regarding the case, alleging that confidential sources who delivered the pen drive were employees of the company that won the contest and that the evidence revealed a “criminal organization formed by agents state public and private agents”, pointed out the ABI.

“In this context, the press and parliamentarians reported the contents of the pen drive in newspapers, in the gallery and to investigative bodies, informing society and requesting action”, continued the document, which obtained a favorable opinion from Minister Dias Toffoli on June 21, 2022 .

The minister’s decision requested “that the public authorities involved stop carrying out acts aimed at holding journalists accountable (by protecting the confidentiality of the journalistic source)” in the disclosure of the alleged corruption scheme involving the state’s Department of Traffic (Detran-ES).

In an interview with Gazeta do Povo, the former president of ABI, journalist Paulo Jerônimo Souza, states that the entity worked hard with its lawyers in the defense of Rangel and the other targets of the Espírito Santo Attorney’s Office because the situation was an “attack on freedom press”. “And we believed at the time that, with the minister’s response, the case would be resolved”, said the former president of the entity, outraged by the sequence given to the case.

“Keeping Rangel and other news reporters imprisoned for more than a year, without any formal charges, is a violation of human rights,” he lamented. The report also contacted the current management of ABI, who preferred not to comment.

Attempt to “start a new persecutory front”, says MPF

According to the MPF’s opinion from October 2022, the PGJ-ES action asking for the arrest of those reporting the case directly to the STF would be an attempt to “initiate a new persecutory front”, which would represent “a possible attempt to circumvent and fail to comply” with the decision by Dias Toffoli. Therefore, the MPF requested “rejection of the representation for precautionary measures and consequent archiving of the case”.

Moraes, however, remained in prison. “They found nothing against me and kept me in prison to oppress, marginalize, persecute and make my journalistic activity of 40 years unfeasible”, says Rangel, placed by the STF in the same “fake news investigation” in which journalist Allan dos Santos and businessman Luciano Hang.

Furthermore, lawyer Gabriel Quintão points out that the councilor and radio host who also reported the pen drive case were imprisoned for the same period as Rangel, as the target of the same direct petition from the Espírito Santo Attorney’s Office to the STF. “And two state deputies who were in office were targets, and they are on ankle bracelets to this day, without being heard or reported, with a ban on leaving the state and even giving interviews.”

Gazeta do Povo tried to contact PGJ-ES by phone, email and WhatsApp, but was not answered. The report also tried to contact the STF, but the press office informed that “the process is confidential”.

What awaits the defense

For Jackson Rangel, the fact that the MPF requested the filing of the action several times makes it clear that “Minister Alexandre de Moraes was misled” by the state attorney’s office and, therefore, his defense hopes that the PGR’s demonstrations will be accepted as soon as possible. as soon as possible to revoke the precautionary measures imposed.

“This will not bring more than 12 months deprivation of liberty back, more than a year of life in prison, but it is already the recognition that there is some rule of law and Constitution in the country”, concludes lawyer Gabriel Quintão.