Joesley: termination of plea bargain was an "act of cowardice" by Janot
In testimony to the 6th Federal Court in São Paulo this Friday (15), businessman Joesley Batista said that the termination of the plea bargain agreement was an “act of cowardice” by Janot; “I messed with the powerful, with the owners of power, and here I am now,” said Joesley; the custody hearing this Friday was to investigate the use of privileged information to profit in the exchange market - the judge maintained Joesley's preventive detention
247 - The Businessman Joesley Batista, one of the owners of the J&F group, criticized the Attorney General of the Republic, Rodrigo Janot, in testimony to the 6th Federal Court in São Paulo this Friday (15). The custody hearing in the investigation into the use of privileged information to obtain profit in the exchange market took place this afternoon and the judge maintained Joesley's preventive detention.
"I messed with the powerful, with those who hold power, and here I am now," said Joesley. "I think the prosecutor was heavily questioned about the reason for our immunity. I think it was an act of cowardice on his part. We made the biggest and most important collaboration in history," he stated.
The federal prosecutor present at the hearing requested, and the judge upheld, Joesley's pre-trial detention. "While the collaborator was under investigation, he continued to commit crimes," said the prosecutor. According to the judge, with the resources he possesses, Joesley could flee anywhere in the world, even without a passport. Joesley will remain imprisoned at the Federal Police headquarters in São Paulo, in the Lapa neighborhood.
According to Joesley's lawyer, Pierpaolo Bottini, the executive's arrest was illegal. "We find this arrest absolutely flawed. We are filing a habeas corpus petition today with the Superior Court of Justice to try to review, to correct this illegality of this arrest, of this custody." The defense requested the revocation of the preventive detention. Joesley and his brother, Wesley, allegedly carried out operations in the financial market knowing they would be profitable with the disclosure of information related to the plea bargain agreement signed between J&F and the Attorney General's Office (PGR).
"It's important to remember that if he were being investigated for insider trading and hadn't cooperated, his situation would be the same as everyone accused of insider trading in Brazil, which is freedom. There is no one accused of insider trading who is in pre-trial detention. Therefore, what differentiates him is precisely the fact that he cooperated," said Joesley's lawyer.