Romário's sister's net worth grew 1.800% in two years.

Rio 247 - The net worth of saleswoman Zoraidi de Souza Faria, sister of Senator Romário (Podemos-RJ), increased by 1.800% in two years. According to official documents, in 2014 she had R$ 649 in assets, a value that rose to R$ 12,4 million in 2016. During the same period, she earned an average monthly income of approximately R$ 4, including salary, profits from financial investments, and a labor settlement.

Romário, a pre-candidate for governor of Rio de Janeiro, uses an account opened in Zoraidi's name at a Banco do Brasil branch in the National Congress through a power of attorney. According to the Council for the Control of Financial Activities (Coaf), the account received R$ 8 million between August 2016 and April 2017. Withdrawals from the same account totaled R$ 7,5 million during the same period. The bank was also used for the former player's expenses with lawyers and for the purchase of a house in a luxury condominium in Barra da Tijuca, in the West Zone of Rio, according to information from the newspaper O Globo.

The property, which cost R$ 6,4 million, formally appears among Zoraidi's assets and is one of the reasons for the increase in her net worth identified in 2016. In the same year that she paid the largest installment of the house purchase (part of it had already been paid in 2015), Romário's sister earned only R$ 8 in wages from a social organization that had a contract with the Rio de Janeiro city hall.

Zoraidi still holds R$600 in cash, R$4,8 million in a private pension plan, and has two luxury cars registered in her name. The court seized the vehicles, alleging that this was a way for Romário to conceal assets and avoid paying debts.