Bruno Toletino, involved in the investigation along with his nephew, appeared before the Senate body but remained silent. The legislators will ask the Justice for access to his banking, telephone, and digital information.
Brazil.- Protected by the writ of habeas corpus granted by the Supreme Federal Court (STF), Bruno Tolentino, uncle of the soccer player Lucas Paquetá, chose to remain silent during the hearing of the Parliamentary Commission of Inquiry (CPI) on the Manipulation of Sports Betting and Games. Given the stance of the declarant, the CPI intends to request the breach of banking, telephone, and digital (digital information) secrecy of Tolentino. The request still needs to be approved by the board.
The suggestion was made by the CPI rapporteur, Senator Romário. Senator Jorge Kajuru, president of the body, assured that the request will be presented soon.
The hearing of Bruno Tolentino lasted less than 15 minutes. The declarant only answered one question from President Kajuru: he affirmed that he has two children. To other questions from the rapporteur and the president, Tolentino simply repeated that he would remain silent under the direction of his lawyers.
Kajuru criticized Tolentino's silence, especially regarding the investigation concerning his nephew. Lucas Paquetá plays for West Ham, a club in England, and is under investigation by the Football Association (English Football Federation) on suspicion of manipulation in the receipt of cards in local championship matches. The statement from Paquetá was also scheduled for the same hearing, but was postponed until December 3 at the request of the player's defense.
According to Kajuru, the declarant had stated, before appearing before the CPI, that the alleged case of manipulation involving Paquetá is a “lie”, but he refused to repeat it in front of the cameras and microphones.
See also: Lucas Paquetá broke the silence: he defended himself from the accusations and pointed against the English Football Federation
«Do you, as a father, think it is normal to remain silent to all questions, but, at the same time, in the room say that everything said about your nephew Paquetá is a lie? By not answering anything, you leave a question for the entire Brazilian society. The Paquetá case is up in the air», reflected the senator.
