Brazilian Federal Police delegates asked Attorney General Paulo Gonet to recuse himself from an investigation into a police report in which his name appears. The document, prepared on orders from Supreme Federal Court Judge André Mendonça, compiles messages found on the mobile phone of Daniel Vorcaro, former owner of the defunct Banco Master, and contains 52 messages sent by Vorcaro to Judge Alexandre de Moraes of the STF. Gonet's name also appears in the report.
The attorney general ordered an investigation to determine whether there were external interferences in the preparation of the document, which revealed an extensive list of Vorcaro's contacts with high-ranking authorities, including million-dollar business deals and offers of luxury experiences to Moraes. The National Association of Federal Police Delegates rejected the measure and argued that the investigators merely followed a court order, with no room to decide or question the instructions received.
The disclosure of the messages triggered a crisis at the STF due to mutual accusations between Judges Mendonça and Moraes. After Mendonça lifted the secrecy order and made the investigations public, Moraes counterattacked by requesting that Mendonça be investigated for "strong indications" of abuse of authority. STF President Luiz Edson Fachin opened a separate process to investigate "alleged irregularities in the Federal Police investigations" and granted five business days for explanations.
The ADPF, which represents more than 2,300 delegates, asked for the case opened by Gonet to be dismissed and requested that all facts be investigated "in their entirety, without selectivity regarding the authorities involved." The association recalled that external oversight of police activity does not establish a hierarchical relationship nor does it grant the Public Ministry disciplinary power over delegates and agents.
