Refit Operation: MPRJ arrests family of Ricardo Magro in billion-real tax evasion scheme
The MPRJ executed 14 arrest warrants and 19 search and seizure warrants against the Refit Group, linked to R$ 5.5 billion in tax fraud. The group's owner, Ricardo Magro, is a fugitive abroad.
MPRJ arrests father, grandfather and uncle of Ricardo Magro in new phase of Refit Operation
Truck Formula pilot André Marques was among ten arrested on Wednesday morning during an operation by the Public Prosecution Service of Rio de Janeiro (MPRJ) against the Refit Group. According to oglobo.globo.com, the action widens the net around businessman Ricardo Andrade Magro, identified by prosecutors as the leader of a billion-real tax fraud scheme — and who is currently a fugitive abroad.
The Specialised Action Group for the Defence of Integrity and Repression of Tax Evasion (Gaesf/MPRJ) carried out 14 arrest warrants and 19 search and seizure warrants, issued by the 2nd Specialised Court of the Capital District. Diligence operations took place in the neighbourhoods of Lagoa and Barra da Tijuca in Rio de Janeiro, and in different cities in São Paulo.
Among the direct targets of the operation are the businessman's parents, João Manuel Magro and Gabriela da Conceição Magro; his grandfather, Manuel Joaquim Andrade; and his uncle Ernesto dos Santos Andrade. Also on the list is Cristiano Beraldo, federal deputy alternate linked to the Free Brazil Movement (MBL), who was not located at the addresses listed in São Paulo. Besides Ricardo Magro, three other people are considered fugitives.
Damage exceeding R$ 5.5 billion to public coffers
The investigation is examining tax fraud involving the Manguinhos Refinery and the distributors Flagler, Fera, Direcional, World Comércio, Phaenarete, Vaishia and 76 Oil. According to the MPRJ, the suppression and non-payment of taxes caused damage exceeding R$ 5.5 billion to state public coffers, in updated values.
According to prosecutors, Magro exercised control over all the companies involved in the supply chain, from the importation of petroleum derivatives to the sale of fuel at petrol stations. The structure would have enabled tax fraud at different stages of the business — from acquisition of raw materials to sale to the end consumer. The scheme gave rise to an expression circulating in the sector: "from port to pump without paying tax."
Family members assumed formal positions in companies
The investigation indicates that as Magro formally distanced himself from the corporate structures of the companies, he was replaced by trusted individuals, including family members. According to the MPRJ, relatives of the businessman remained in the corporate structure as formal partners or representatives, which would have allowed the maintenance of control over the businesses and the continuity of the investigated activities.
Magro had already been the subject of a preventive arrest order from the Federal Supreme Court (STF) in May, during the first phase of the Operation Without Refining, conducted by the Federal Police.
Defences contest arrests
The defence of pilot André Marques, represented by the law firm Fernando José da Costa Advogados, stated that it received the news of the client's arrest in Operation Charon with surprise. The lawyers stated that they had not had access to the investigation and were unaware of the evidence that underpinned the measure. The defence considers that there are no elements that justify preventive arrest and stated that it would request revocation as soon as it has access to the court files.
The defence of Ernesto dos Santos Andrade, for its part, stated in a note that it did not have access to the court files, but that he "has always been and continues to be at the disposal of Justice to provide all necessary clarifications."
Series of operations against the Refit Group
Wednesday's action is part of a sequence of measures by Gaesf/MPRJ against tax evasion in the fuel sector. In August, a joint inspection closed a clandestine warehouse in Duque de Caxias with a capacity to store more than 550,000 litres.
At the beginning of September, the MPRJ obtained a court order for the bankruptcy of the companies of the Refit Group. According to the Public Prosecution Service, the fiscal liability of the group increased from around R$ 5 billion to R$ 25.7 billion over nearly ten years of judicial recovery.
Also in September, Operation Fulgor inspected five fuel stations in the capital and identified establishments operating despite legal impediments, as well as irregularities in pumps and fuel adulteration.
Source: Google News BR — Crime