SAO PAULO, March 4 (UPI) --
Brazilian police raided the home of former President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva on Friday and detained him as part of an investigation of a graft scheme involving the national oil company.
Da Silva, 70, who served two terms as president of Brazil from 2003 to 2010 and was succeed by protégé Dilma Rousseff, was taken to a Sao Paulo police station after federal police agents swarmed his home. The headquarters of his presidential institute and members of his family were also targeted.
Although de Silva has been detained, he has not been charged nor arrested. Retired from politics, he remains a powerful figure in Brazilian government.
Police said they had evidence de Silva received kickbacks in a massive scandal involving Petrobras, Brazil's national oil company. Suspicion that business executives and politicians overcharged Petrobras in contracts, then used the money to pay bribes, has led to the arrests or investigations of dozens of people, including many in the highest realms of Brazilian government and business. Construction companies allegedly favored de Silva in the development of luxury developments, investigators say.
As de Silva was detained, 33 search warrants and 11 detention warrants across Brazil's Rio de Janeiro, Sao Paolo and Bahia states were undertaken, involving more than 200 federal police agents.
The corruption scandal had led to repeated calls that Rousseff either reign or face impeachment. De Silva's institute released a statement Thursday saying he committed no illegal acts prior to, during or after his presidency, and Rousseff has denied any knowledge of crimes.
Source: United Press International
(March 4, 2016 - 8:25 AM EST)
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