09/05/2024 – 18:14
Operation Integration by the Civil Police of Pernambuco, launched on Wednesday, the 4th, has so far served 10 arrest warrants and 24 search and seizure warrants. The operation is still ongoing. The sum of the assets and cash seized totals more than R$150 million.
According to the police, dozens of properties, vessels, aircraft, vehicles and valuables were seized. “In one target alone, we found 11 Rolex watches,” said Chief Inspector Renato Rocha.
Among the targets of the operation are groups linked to bets (sports betting sites, which are regular), but the investigation is targeting gambling sites, which are illegal. According to the authorities, the criminal organization launders money through event companies, advertising, currency exchanges and insurance companies.
Among the seizures made, the following have been recorded to date:
R$ 439,869 in cash;
US$ 2,153 in cash (approximately R$ 12,146);
€5,819 in cash (approximately R$36,372);
£6,310 in cash (approximately R$46,567);
two aircraft and two helicopters valued at R$127 million;
five luxury cars valued at R$24.4 million;
37 luxury women’s bags;
76 rings and 17 jewels of different models;
16 luxury watches.
Several documents were also seized and are being analyzed and should strengthen the evidence gathered in the police investigation, according to the Civil Police of Pernambuco.
Among those arrested are digital influencer and lawyer Deolane Bezerra and her mother, Solange Bezerra. Deolane was promoting Esportes da Sorte, which is also under investigation. The owner of the betting house, Darwin Filho, is expected to turn himself in to the police this Thursday, the 5th, according to his lawyer.
The businessman who owns VaideBet is also being investigated. José André da Rocha Neto also owns other companies, including JMJ Participações, which bought a plane that was seized in the police operation. The plane was registered in the name of a company owned by singer Gusttavo Lima, who claims to have sold the aircraft to JMJ. The National Civil Aviation Agency (ANAC) confirmed the sale and stated that the plane is registered in the name of the country singer until full payment for the sale is made.
Deolane Bezerra’s defense stated that she was the victim of a “great injustice” and said that “legal issues are being treated seriously and transparently”
In a statement, Esportes da Sorte says that, since March 2023, it has provided all necessary clarifications in the ongoing police investigation records. The online betting company also stated that its fixed-odds betting activities “strictly comply with the law with legal-regulatory excellence, independent audit monitoring and a compliance system”.
According to the website, there was a “hasty and mistaken interpretation of the facts found, without any analysis or consideration of the arguments already presented”. So much so, it continues, “that the police authority did not seize any object, document or equipment at the company’s headquarters”. The Civil Police did not inform whether any assets were seized at that company.
VaideBet informs that it is monitoring the Civil Police operation and that it will be fully available to the authorities to provide any clarifications requested regarding the actions of the company and its partners.
“The brand, however, emphasizes that it was surprised by the fulfillment of the search and seizure warrant carried out this Wednesday, since it has been willing to contribute to the investigations since last year, having previously indicated the relevant addresses and contacts,” it said in a statement.
“The company’s activities to date have been guided by strict compliance with current legislation and are already in line with the sector’s regulations for 2025. Also in August, the BPX Group, the company that owns the VaideBet brand, submitted a license application to the federal government to obtain the grant for regularized operations in Brazil from the beginning of next year,” he added.
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