Former ULS Aveiro president held until Monday in corruption case
Ricardo Correia de Matos remains in custody until Monday, when coercive measures will be announced. The two businessmen detained in Operation Batas & Betão were released on Friday.
Operation Batas & Betão: former administrator of ULS Aveiro held in custody
The former chairman of the board of the Local Health Unit (ULS) of Aveiro, Ricardo Correia de Matos, will remain in custody at least until Monday, when the investigating judge will announce the coercive measures applicable to the case. The information was disclosed by publico.pt, which has been following the process since the arrest, which occurred last Monday by the Judicial Police.
The two businessmen also detained under Operation Batas & Betão were released on Friday, and must return to court on Monday to learn what coercive measures will be imposed on them. This procedure typically occurs when the Public Prosecutor's Office does not request custodial measures for the defendants, leading judges to find that there is no grounds to maintain deprivation of liberty before a final decision.
Ricardo Correia de Matos and one of the businessmen chose to make statements during judicial interrogation; the other contractor remained silent. The three detainees, aged between 44 and 51, were identified before the investigating judge on Tuesday afternoon, but interrogations only began on Thursday at 14:00, as a result of bad weather predicted for Wednesday.
On Tuesday, the Minister of Health, Ana Paula Martins, ordered Correia de Matos' dismissal — one day after his arrest — meaning the defendant no longer held office when the interrogations took place.
Alleged scheme to favour public contracts
The suspicions that led to the arrest point to a scheme set up by Correia de Matos with two businessmen he knew, to whom he allegedly awarded contracts both at the Nurses' Association and the Red Cross, institutions where he held management positions. In return, the businessmen allegedly built him a residential property at Praia da Barra, which remains unfinished.
A Lisbon lawyer is also suspected of benefiting from a similar scheme, having allegedly obtained legal services contracts through the same network of favouritism.
To conceal the process, companies were previously selected to invite to tender, simulating competition. Investigators also suspect that Correia de Matos — a trained nurse and also an accountant — entered into, in certain circumstances, two contracts for the same service, enabling significant amounts to be diverted from the organisations he administered.
Previous judicial history
Correia de Matos had previously been a defendant in an earlier case: he was one of 13 accused in the alleged diversion of 63,000 euros from the Nurses' Association, which involved the current president, Luís Filipe Barreira, and the former president, Ana Rita Cavaco. At the time, Correia de Matos chaired the Central regional section and was a member, by inherent right, of the association's management board.
The defendants, accused of having forged travel expenses relating to trips not undertaken, were acquitted in November of last year, after judges found there to be doubts about the commission of the crimes. The Public Prosecutor's Office announced an appeal, but an error in the calculation of the legal deadline made its submission impossible.
Source: SIC Notícias