TCU gives Bolsonaro 5 days to return jewelry and weapons to the Presidency

The ministers of the Federal Court of Accounts (TCU) judged this Wednesday (15) the case of jewelry delivered by Saudi Arabia to the former president of the Republic, Jair Bolsonaro. By unanimous decision, the ministers determined a period of 5 days for Bolsonaro to return the jewelry from the second case. The court also responded to the suggestion of Minister Benjamin Zymler and ordered the delivery of a rifle and a pistol that Bolsonaro received as a gift in 2019 from the United Arab Emirates.

The items must be delivered to the General Secretariat of the Presidency of the Republic. The valuable assets must remain in custody until the TCU deliberates again on the case.

The jewels that would be delivered to the former first lady, Michelle Bolsonaro, and which she is unaware of, are with the Federal Revenue, as some newspapers have pointed out, and must also be forwarded to the Presidency.

The TCU also determined a complete audit from 2019 to 2022 of all gifts that Bolsonaro received on behalf of the government. According to the court, only items of lesser value, perishable and of a very personal nature, such as T-shirts and caps, can be incorporated into the private collection of the President of the Republic.

The former Minister of Mines and Energy, Bento Albuquerque, testified to the Federal Police, this Tuesday (14), about the jewelry case. At the time, he said that his entourage received the official items from the Saudi government as “state gifts” in October 2021.

The case of the jewels came to light, on the 4th, with the report of the “Estado de S. Paulo” informing that the government of Jair Bolsonaro (PL) would have tried to bring to Brazil illegally, without paying taxes, jewels (necklace, ring, watch and a pair of earrings) and a watch that, together, would be worth around R$ 16.5 million. The Minister of Justice, Flávio Dino, called the PF on March 6 to investigate the jewelry package and the Federal Court of Auditors (TCU) ordered a hearing with Bolsonaro and Albuquerque about the case. Upon learning of the investigations, the former president denied that the gifts from the Saudi government were for his and his wife’s personal use.

Bolsonaro has yet to comment on TCU’s determination. Last Monday (13), the ex-president’s defense team informed that he is going to deliver the second set of gifts received from the Saudi government and that they would have passed through the Customs Office without inspection. The lawyers say, in a document filed with the TCU, that Bolsonaro did not intend to “have for himself assets that could, in any way, be held as public”.