Luiz Estevão may buy Correio Braziliense.
Sentenced to three years and six months in prison under a semi-open regime for fraud in the construction of the São Paulo Regional Court, former senator Luiz Estevão, who is also one of the richest men in the Federal District, wants to reinvent himself as a 'media mogul'; in Brasília, he has already circulated a project to create an online newspaper, but has also opened negotiations to buy Correio Braziliense, the largest newspaper in the federal capital and one of the oldest in the country, which belongs to Diários Associados, which is facing a deep economic crisis; bad news for Governor Rodrigo Rollemberg, who may have a powerful businessman on his heels.
Brasilia 247 One of the country's wealthiest prisoners wants to reinvent himself as a media mogul. This is former senator Luiz Estevão, owner of the OK Group and a multi-billion dollar real estate portfolio, who is serving a three-year and six-month prison sentence in a semi-open regime for fraud in the construction of the São Paulo Regional Labor Court, the famous project of Judge Nicolau dos Santos Neto, "Lalau".
Estevão, who is allowed to leave the Papuda prison during the day and has returned to frequenting good restaurants in the federal capital (yesterday he occupied one of the main tables at Lake's), has already circulated in Brasília the project of creating an online newspaper. But, in recent weeks, he has also opened talks with Diários Associados, which is facing a deep economic crisis, to buy Correio Braziliense, the largest newspaper in Brasília and one of the oldest in the country.
In its heyday, during José Roberto Arruda's administration, Correio received around R$ 5 million per month in official advertising from the Federal District Government. But that era is over. Facing a financial crisis, the GDF (Federal District Government) reduced its annual advertising budget from over R$ 200 million to just over R$ 30 million this year, the first year of Rodrigo Rollemberg's administration (PSB party).
Even so, the Correio newspaper would be an important tool in Estevão's hands, for whom money is hardly a problem. Allies of the former senator were involved in the dissemination of accusations that culminated in Arruda's downfall, in the so-called 'DEM mensalão' scandal. If he manages to buy Correio, he will have the power to influence local politics (Estevão is an ally of the Roriz family), placing himself on Rollemberg's heels.
In the Associates group, the crisis is also related to the political choices of the Teixeira da Costa family, which presides over the consortium and openly supported the "wrong candidates" -- Aécio Neves in the presidential race, Pimenta da Veiga in Minas Gerais, and Arruda in Brasília. Having lost all the contests, the Associates group has been left on the sidelines of power in Minas Gerais, where they own the Estado de Minas newspaper, and also in the federal capital.
The group's initial plan, which has already divested assets in the Northeast, was to sell its Minas Gerais operation to preserve Brasília. But depending on the size of Estevão's check, everything could change.