Toffoli restores decisions of judge critical of Lava Jato – 12/21/2023 – Power

Minister Dias Toffoli, from the STF, ordered the restoration of cases decided by judge Eduardo Appio that had been annulled by the TRF-4 (Federal Regional Court of the 4th Region).

With this, Toffoli extends a September decision that had already restored the acts of the judge who worked at the 13th Federal Criminal Court of Curitiba, responsible for the Operation Lava Jato processes.

Appio was removed from court following disciplinary proceedings opened against him at the TRF-4 Internal Affairs Office, the second instance of the Federal Court, under suspicion of bias. In October, in agreement with the CNJ (National Council of Justice), it was decided that he would take over another federal court.

The Supreme Minister’s decision was taken on Tuesday (19), the last day before the Judiciary recess.

He responded to a request to extend the decision he had given regarding businessman Raul Schmidt Felippe Junior, the target of the operation.

The request was made by Marcio Pinto de Magalhães, who asked that the benefit be extended to other decisions that were annulled. According to the minister, “the identity of legal situations is undeniable, regarding the nullity of the decisions that revoked the court ruling in favor of the applicant”.

In September, the minister suspended disciplinary proceedings against the judge at TRF-4 and said that it was the CNJ who should handle the case.

According to Toffoli, as other disciplinary proceedings relating to first and second instance judges who worked in Lava Jato are being processed by the CNJ, there is no reason for Appio’s case to remain in the TRF-4.

“There is no reason for the disciplinary complaints already filed against federal judges — Loraci Flores and de Lima and Marcelo — Malucelli and judge Gabriela Hardt to be processed before the National Council of Justice and for only judge Eduardo Fernando Appio to be disciplinary investigated before the Federal Regional Court of the 4th Region”, stated Toffoli in the September decision.

“Even as a measure of prudence and preservation of TRF-4 members, all procedures should be analyzed and judged by the CNJ, also in order to make joint analysis viable, just as has already been happening in relation to Extraordinary Correction in the 13th Federal Criminal Court “, he stated.

“From the above, I can see that there is no way to separate the ongoing investigations, without prejudice to a necessary overview of everything that happened in the 13th Federal Criminal Court of Curitiba.”

Openly critical of the methods of Lava Jato launched in 2014, Appio assumed the title of the 13th Federal Court of Curitiba in February this year.

Appio became the target of disciplinary proceedings because he is suspected of having made a call to lawyer João Eduardo Barreto Malucelli in April, pretending to be someone else, and apparently trying to prove that he was speaking to the son of federal judge Marcelo Malucelli, then Lava rapporteur Jet in second instance.

João Eduardo is a partner of current senator Sergio Moro (União Brasil-PR) in a law firm and, at the time of the phone call, Marcelo Malucelli and Appio had conflicting legal decisions.

The lawyer recorded the call, and a PF report commissioned by the TRF-4 internal affairs department points out that the audio “strongly corroborates the hypothesis” that it is Appio’s voice. The judge did not admit having made the call, which the lawyer interpreted as some kind of threat.