Former advisor to the Federal District government is involved in the email wiretapping case.
One of the victims of the interception of messages by police officer Marcello Oliveira is the controversial blogger Edson Sombra, also involved in espionage and an adversary of Agnelo Queiroz (PT).
247 – Civil police officer Marcello de Oliveira Lopes is under investigation by the Federal Police for his alleged involvement in the illegal interception of emails belonging to opponents of the governor of the Federal District, Agnelo Queiroz (PT). Marcelão, as he is known, is a trusted associate of the governor's current chief of staff, Cláudio Monteiro. According to investigators, one of the victims of the email breach is journalist Edson Sombra, known for being a witness in another Federal Police operation that culminated in the arrest of former DF governor José Roberto Arruda. Today, Sombra is an opponent of Agnelo's government.
Read the article in Folha.
The Federal Police are investigating a former aide to the governor of the Federal District, Agnelo Queiroz (PT), for involvement in the illegal interception of emails from political opponents.
This refers to civil police officer Marcello de Oliveira Lopes, known as Marcelão.
He was dismissed on Monday from the position of trust he had held in the Military House since February 15. Before that, he was an advisor to the director of the Civil Police of the Federal District.
The police officer left the Military House after it was revealed that his name appeared in Operation Monte Carlo, launched on February 29th.
The operation also uncovered conversations between businessman Carlinhos Cachoeira, accused of running illegal gambling operations, and Senator Demóstenes Torres (GO). He left his party, DEM, and is at risk of being impeached.
Marcello Lopes is a trusted associate of the governor's current chief of staff, Cláudio Monteiro, who brought him into the upper echelons of Agnelo's government. Monteiro also appears in the Federal Police investigation.
Between 2011 and 2012, Lopes discussed accessing third-party emails in telephone conversations with Sergeant Idalberto Matias, nicknamed Dadá, who was identified as an informant for Cachoeira's group, according to three sources from the investigations who confirmed this to Folha.
It is suspected that the targets of the wiretaps are politicians and journalists.
TARGETS
According to investigators, one of the victims of the email breach is journalist Edson Sombra, known for being a witness in another Federal Police operation that culminated in the arrest of former DF governor José Roberto Arruda. Today, Sombra is an opponent of Agnelo's government.
Another suspicion is that there was a breach of confidentiality regarding federal deputy Fernando Francischini (PSDB-PR), a former federal police officer, who made accusations against the Agnelo government. "If there was a breach of confidentiality concerning a deputy, it is an affront to democracy," said the deputy.
According to the police, the illegal wiretaps were carried out by Etesp (Escola Técnica de Segurança Privada), a company in Rio de Janeiro owned by a retired Federal Police agent.
Yesterday, Folha revealed that Dadá used the same company's services to obtain third-party email addresses.
The police removed Marcello Lopes' email conversations from the Operation Monte Carlo case files to investigate the matter separately. The investigations are ongoing and confidential.
The Federal Police operation carried out a search and seizure at Etesp. Investigators now want to identify what was passed on to Cachoeira's group and what remained with the former special advisor to the government of the Federal District.
Marcello Lopes said he has known Dadá since 2001 and admitted to receiving a special radio from him. According to the Federal Police, the equipment was used to avoid wiretapping.
Contracts in the Federal District
Marcello Lopes' family owns Plá Comunicação, an advertising agency registered in the names of his mother and wife, which has contracts with the government of the Federal District.
In wiretapped phone conversations conducted by the Federal Police, he is referred to as "Marcellão da Plá". Since 2011, when Agnelo took office, Plá has signed contracts with agencies in the Federal District.
In a recording from April 14, 2011, Lopes speaks using a cell phone registered to the Plá agency.
He and Dadá complain about the lack of payments, which they claim are being made "by the people at Delta" - one of the largest construction companies in the country.