Odebrecht transformed bribes into official donations.
Between 2010 and 2014, Odebrecht changed its tactics in transferring money to politicians, resorting to declared electoral donations to the Electoral Court; one of the 77 executives who signed a collaboration agreement with Operation Lava Jato in December, Claudio Melo Filho, listed payments totaling R$ 26,6 million via undeclared funds in 2014; the increase in official donations pointed out by informants is corroborated by data from the Superior Electoral Court, according to which companies in the group donated a total of R$ 15,7 million to candidates, campaign committees and parties in 2010 - equivalent to R$ 20 million adjusted for inflation during the period; in the 2014 elections, the amount rose to R$ 88,9 million - a jump of 343%.
247 - Between 2010 and 2014, Odebrecht changed its tactics in transferring money to politicians, resorting to declared electoral donations to the Electoral Court. One of the 77 executives who signed a collaboration agreement with Operation Lava Jato in December, Claudio Melo Filho, listed payments totaling R$ 26,6 million via undeclared funds in 2014. The increase in official donations pointed out by informants is corroborated by data from the Superior Electoral Court, according to which companies in the group donated a total of R$ 15,7 million to candidates, campaign committees, and parties in 2010 – equivalent to R$ 20 million adjusted for inflation during that period. In the 2014 elections, the amount rose to R$ 88,9 million – a jump of 343%.
As information These are from Folha de S.Paulo.
"Other payments reported by the construction company remain confidential. The plea bargain agreements still need the approval of Minister Teori Zavascki, the rapporteur for Lava Jato at the Supreme Federal Court."
Back in 2014, the year in which Odebrecht's donations surged, the first investigations of Lava Jato already pointed to electoral funds as a channel used for paying bribes.
The operation was launched in March of that year. Even before the election, the Petrobras Parliamentary Commission of Inquiry was established in Congress, and former Petrobras director Paulo Roberto Costa and money launderer Alberto Youssef made their first plea bargains.
In April, a Federal Police report on a document found at Costa's home raised the possibility that the scheme at Petrobras may have funded political campaigns.
The increase in official donations reported by whistleblowers is corroborated by data from the Superior Electoral Court, according to which companies in the group donated a total of R$ 15,7 million to candidates, campaign committees and parties in 2010 - equivalent to R$ 20 million adjusted for inflation during that period.
In the 2014 elections, the amount rose to R$ 88,9 million - a jump of 343%.
Total donations to campaigns and political parties during the period grew by 2% in adjusted values: from R$ 4,7 billion to R$ 4,8 billion, according to the NGO Transparência Brasil.