Shipbrokers in Brazil have come under official scrutiny in the Operation Car Wash corruption probe.
Prosecutors have told a federal judge that they suspect Petrobras officials of involvement in a corruption scheme alleged to have favoured three Rio de Janeiro shipbroking firms in vessel contracting, documents obtained by TradeWinds show.
The allegations emerged as part of information provided to authorities by a former Petrobras trader and charterer, Rodrigo Garcia Berkowitz. His plea agreement with prosecutors has helped lead to search warrants against Petrobras officials over diesel and jet-fuel deals involving Swiss trading giant Vitol.
‘Corruption schemes’
The documents obtained by TradeWinds, which were dated in September but have only recently come to light, also highlight information on alleged corruption in Petrobras’ chartering department.
Prosecutors told a federal court in Curitiba, in the state of Parana, that Berkowitz told them he worked with fellow Petrobras employee Marcos Gomes “to implement corruption schemes” in favour of the shipbroking companies in Petrobras ship-chartering deals.
The documents name brokers Brazilship/Scanbrasil, Brazilship Afretamentos Maritimos and Interfrete in connection with the alleged scheme.
Two other Petrobras employees — oil products logistics manager Ilmar Lopes and clean products coordinator Luiz Teixiera — are also named in association with a “corruption scheme” involving Brazilship/Scanbrasil.
In that case, Berkowitz told prosecutors that between the middle of 2007 and May 2008, his three co-workers “associated ... to implement a corruption scheme in favour of Brazilship/Scanbrasil in the chartering of ships carried out by Petrobras”, according to the documents.
Lopes’ alleged role in the scheme was to pressure Petrobras’ chartering manager to fix out vessels offered by the brokerage by seeking unique technical characteristics for ships to move oil product cargoes, the prosecutors said.
Teixiera’s alleged role was to highlight the importance of particular ships for Petrobras’ commercial operations.
“With this, the general manager of maritime transport felt pressure to approve these contracts,” prosecutors said.
TradeWinds has requested comment from Berkowitz and Lopes through their LinkedIn profiles, but was unable to reach Teixiera.
“We are not aware of the content in the investigative process but we are available to authorities in order to help with elucidating the facts,” said Rogerio Abruzzini, a general manager at Brazilship/Scanbrasil.
Sources in Brazil said Berkowitz’s need to cooperate with authorities in Brazil and the US in criminal proceedings against him raised questions about his willingness to implicate others.
In addition to his plea agreement in Brazil, Berkowitz has pleaded guilty to money-laundering charges in the US, according to Reuters.
The documents do not detail the suspicions against the other two broking houses. Interfrete did not immediately respond to TradeWinds’ requests for comment, and a response from Brazilship Afretamentos did not address the allegations. Sources in Brazil said neither firm is currently active in shipbroking.
No charges are known to have been filed against any of the three shipbroking firms.
The suspicions relating to the shipbrokers’ business emerged as part of a request for search-and-seizure warrants in a separate case in which Berkowitz is also a star witness. That case, in which several Petrobras officials are targeted, is focused on the diesel and jet-fuel deals of Vitol.
The documents are part of the sweeping Car Wash corruption investigation by the federal Public Prosecutor’s Office that has led to a raft of arrests related to bribery of Petrobras officials.
In addition to Berkowitz’s testimony, the Vitol case has as a witness Marcio Dutra Goncalves, a former president of the trader’s Brazil office.
Asked about the latest phase of the investigation, a spokeswoman for Petrobras reiterated its long-standing argument that it is the victim of the crimes that have emerged from Operation Car Wash.
“Petrobras has been collaborating with the investigations since 2014 and acts as co-plaintiff with the federal [Public Prosecutor’s Office] and the federal Attorney General’s Office in 21 ongoing administrative misconduct complaints, in addition to being the accusation assistant in 71 criminal procedures,” she said.
