Brazil's Top Court Justice Archives Inquiry into STJ Minister Over Alleged Decision Sales

Justice Cristiano Zanin of Brazil's Supreme Federal Court (STF) has archived an inquiry into Superior Court of Justice (STJ) Minister Og Fernandes. The investigation had been looking into suspicions that Fernandes was involved in the sale and leaking of judicial decisions.

Zanin's decision followed a request from the Prosecutor General's Office (PGR), which concluded that there were insufficient elements to support the suspicions against Fernandes. The inquiry, initiated in April and kept under high secrecy by Zanin, targeted Fernandes as the third STJ minister to be investigated under Zanin's supervision. Investigations into ministers Moura Ribeiro and Marco Buzzi remain open.

The PGR's request for archiving came after the newspaper Folha sought comment from Fernandes regarding the existence of the investigations. Following this contact, Fernandes' defense team reportedly approached the PGR to request a formal opinion and the closure of the case. Prosecutor General Paulo Gonet subsequently supported this course of action.

Fernandes, 74, has served as an STJ minister since 2008, previously being a judge in the Court of Justice of Pernambuco. Initial lines of inquiry by the Federal Police had explored alleged information leaks from Operation Faroeste by Rodrigo Falcão, Fernandes' former chief of staff. Operation Faroeste itself investigates the sale of decisions within the Court of Justice of Bahia, with many of its key inquiries falling under Og Fernandes's purview. A supposed decision related to the case, found on a lobbyist's phone, was later determined to be a false document.

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there are no elements in the investigation that support suspicions about the minister.