Mayor and Vice-Mayor of Jandira Sentenced for Fraud in R$ 627,000 Christmas Hamper Tender
The court has sentenced the mayor Henri Hajime Sato and vice-mayor Carlos Eduardo Piteri to loss of office for administrative misconduct in fraudulent purchase of Christmas hampers for municipal employees in 2021.
Administrative misconduct conviction reaches top of Jandira executive
The mayor of Jandira, Henri Hajime Sato (PSDB), and vice-mayor Carlos Eduardo Piteri (Democrat) have been sentenced to loss of office for administrative misconduct due to irregularities in the contracting of Christmas hampers for municipal employees in 2021, as reported by g1.globo.com. The sentence was handed down on Friday (25th) by judge Daniela Maria Rosa Nascimento, of the 2nd Court of Jandira. An appeal is possible, and loss of office only takes effect after the judgement becomes final.
The judge concluded that the contracting of Imperium Serviços Eireli company, valued at R$ 627,211.16, resulted from a "prior arrangement" between those involved, and not from regular competition between suppliers.
Fraud in electronic tender, according to the São Paulo Public Prosecutor's Office
The Public Prosecutor's Office of São Paulo maintained that there was fraud in the electronic tender opened by the municipality for acquisition of the products. In addition to the mayor and vice-mayor, Maurício Celestino, owner of the contracted company, and Imperium Serviços Eireli itself were convicted. The four are jointly liable for reimbursement of R$ 627,211.16 to public coffers, a sum that will be adjusted for inflation and charged with interest.
Sato had his political rights suspended for eight years and was sentenced to pay a fine of R$ 627,211.16. Piteri received the same penalties, with suspension of political rights for six years. Both are prohibited from contracting with the public sector for eight and six years, respectively.
Celestino was sentenced to loss of public office, suspension of political rights for eight years, and prohibition from contracting with the public sector for ten years. Imperium received a fine of R$ 627,211.16 and was also barred from entering into contracts with public entities for ten years.
Timeline indicates prior targeting
The process began in November 2021, when the mayor submitted to the City Council, on an urgent basis, a bill authorising the purchase and distribution of Christmas hampers to employees. The bill was presented on 25 November and resulted in Municipal Law No. 2,386, signed on 1 December, with an estimated expense of R$ 800,000. Two days after promulgation, the municipality published the electronic tender notice.
The Public Prosecutor's action points to a series of irregularities in the procedure: failure to meet the minimum eight-business-day deadline between publication of the notice and submission of proposals; evaluation of samples by only one employee, although the notice provided for a committee with at least three members; participation of companies with corporate purposes incompatible with the tendered products; and definition of the winner before the deadline for one of the participants to submit grounds for appeal expired.
The timeline of the contracting was also highlighted by the Public Prosecutor's Office. The hampers were delivered on 18 December 2021 and distributed to employees the following day. The adjudication document, however, would have been signed only on 19 December, and the contract with Imperium entered into on 21 December—the same date as the issuance of the commitment note. For the Public Prosecutor's Office, this sequence indicates that the outcome of the tender was already predetermined.
Company with no structure and owner appointed later
The Public Prosecutor's Office also noted that Imperium had altered its corporate purpose in July 2021 to include food goods commerce. The address registered by the company coincided with its administrator's residence and, according to the action, it did not have business infrastructure compatible with the contract entered into.
A few days after payment to the company, on 17 January 2022, Celestino was appointed by the mayor to the post of Municipal Secretary of Works and Urban Services of Jandira.
Defences deny irregularities
The defences of Sato and Piteri denied irregularities in the process. The defendants argued that they did not conduct the tender or receive the products, attributing any shortcomings to the technical staff of the administration. The defence also argued that the hampers were delivered in full and that the price was compatible with market rates.
The Public Prosecutor's Office, for its part, maintained that, although the hampers were delivered, the contracting had an unlawful purpose and was directed to serve private interests, which is why the municipality would have suffered a loss equivalent to the full value of the contract.
The sentence declared contract No. 142/2021 null and void. Jandira Municipality did not respond to enquiries by the time of reporting closure.
Source: Google News BR — São Paulo