The owner of the Bahamas hotel says that Aref Saab asked for R$ 170 to release the hotel.

247 – Businessman Oscar Maroni accused Hussain Aref Saab, former director of the sector responsible for approving medium and large-scale projects in São Paulo, of demanding R$ 170 in bribes to legalize a hotel in Moema. Dismissed by Gilberto Kassab, Aref is under investigation for purchasing 106 properties during his seven years as head of Aprov, with declared income of R$ 20 per month. This is the first formal accusation against him.

Read more in the Folha article:

Businessman Oscar Maroni testified yesterday to the Public Prosecutor's Office that former São Paulo City Hall director Hussain Aref Saab asked him for R$ 170 in bribes in exchange for the regularization of a hotel in Moema, in the southern part of the city.

This is the first formal testimony accusing Aref of corruption.

Until now, there was an anonymous letter sent to Mayor Gilberto Kassab (PSD) and then to the General Ombudsman of the Municipality.
According to "TV Folha," the former director purchased 106 properties during his seven years as head of Aprov, the department responsible for approving medium and large-scale developments. His net worth is estimated at R$ 50 million. His declared income is R$ 20 per month.

During his four-hour testimony, Maroni provided details of how Aref's request allegedly occurred, but presented no documentary evidence.
He stated that the bribe was not paid "for fear that it was a trap".

In an interview with Folha, Maroni admitted that he would have handed over the money to the former director if he had had even the slightest guarantee of success, since his losses were much greater than the R$ 170.

The businessman owns the Bahamas nightclub, which was shut down by the city government on charges of facilitating prostitution. Maroni was even arrested (see sidebar). The request to reopen the club will be judged today in the Court of Justice.

Maroni also owns Oscar's Hotel, which closed in 2007 while still under construction, following the TAM plane crash.
According to the city government, the location interferes with the flight paths of planes using Congonhas Airport. It was regarding this latter property, built illegally, that Aref allegedly solicited a bribe.

In another part of the testimony, Maroni said he received in his office an engineer with no connection to the city hall, accompanied by another unidentified man who stated that it would be possible to get the nightclub and hotel approved for R$ 10 million.

Pre-candidate for mayor and responsible for appointing Aref to Aprov when he was mayor in 2005, José Serra (PSDB) said yesterday that, if elected, he will change the licensing system, integrating various services into a single counter and "automating as much as possible." "That way it won't be in the hands of one or two people," he said.