Brazilian Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes has ordered up to R$6 billion, about US$1.19 billion, in assets frozen from lawyer Willer Tomaz, The Rio Times reports, citing Agência Brasil and g1. The order, signed on Friday, comes in a money-laundering inquiry in which Tomaz's friend, presidential candidate Flávio Bolsonaro, is also under investigation. No one has been charged, and both men deny doing business together.
Moraes also lifted banking and tax secrecy for Tomaz and four companies, cancelled his passports, including a diplomatic one, and suspended his firms' business activities. Investigators said Tomaz's move to Miami after a police search in August raised the risk that evidence, especially funds abroad, could be lost.
The decision came two days before Sunday's presidential runoff between President Lula and Flávio Bolsonaro.
Source: The Rio Times
