TCU orders Bolsonaro to return jewelry and weapons within 5 days – 03/15/2023 – Power

The TCU (Tribunal de Contas da União), determined this Wednesday (15) that Jair Bolsonaro (PL) must deliver the jewelry he received as a gift from Saudi Arabia and the weapons he brought in 2019 upon returning from a trip to the Middle East to the Secretariat -General of the Presidency of the Republic, within five days.

The measure was suggested by Minister Augusto Nardes, rapporteur of the case. He reformulated the precautionary decision he had given last Thursday (9) and which allowed Bolsonaro to keep custody (but without using or selling) the luxury goods sent to him through former Minister Bento Albuquerque (Minas e Energy).

Bolsonaro’s defense had sent a letter to the TCU on Monday (13) asking the court to keep the articles until the investigations were completed, determining the designation of date and place for their presentation.

Nardes, however, stated that there is no court case law for the court to receive the jewels and that such an action would not be applicable to the TCU. The vote was followed by the other ministers, who still ask Bolsonaro to forward proof of delivery of the material to the General Secretariat of the Presidency.

The ministers also assessed that the material should not remain with the Federal Revenue.

The former president also sent a letter to the Federal Police saying that he is at the agency’s disposal to provide testimony on the case. Bolsonaro’s defense argued that he made the decision in light of the news published in the press, “even without being able to affirm the reliability of the information, since he did not receive any subpoena or was officially aware of it, except by the press vehicles”.

In October 2021, Albuquerque led an entourage to an international event in Saudi Arabia. On his return, an advisor to the then minister had a set of luxury items seized at the Revenue Service at the airport in Guarulhos (SP), including a necklace, earrings, a ring and a watch by the Swiss brand Chopard, as revealed by the newspaper O Estado de S. Paulo. The value of these objects was estimated at around R$16.5 million.

A second package, which includes a watch, pen, cufflinks, a ring and a type of rosary, all by Chopard, was not intercepted by the Revenue and was delivered to Bolsonaro, who incorporated the articles into his personal collection, as shown by the Sheet. Now, he will have to return them to the Presidency.

The former president also received a pistol and rifle from representatives of the United Arab Emirates as a gift in 2019.

The rifle was customized with Bolsonaro’s name, according to information published by the Metrópoles website. The pistol can have prices ranging from R$5,900 to R$15,600. Similar rifle models cost between R$32 and R$42,000.