A federal judge has ordered the arrest of former Brazilian President Luiz
Inacio Lula da Silva, giving him until late Friday afternoon to present
himself to federal police, according to an arrest warrant.
The
order was given after the country’s Supreme Court ruled that Lula da
Silva must start serving a 12-year jail sentence for corruption, a move
that may end his political career.
Lula
da Silva will not be handcuffed and will be placed in a separate jail
cell upon his arrest, according to the arrest warrant. His legal team
has not yet commented.
Lula
da Silva, who governed Brazil from 2003 to 2011, had been considered a
frontrunner in elections due in October. But the court’s decision not to
grant his request to remain free while appealing the conviction has
cast doubt on his bid to regain power.
The 72-year-old former president
had filed a habeas corpus request to delay his prison sentence, but the
supreme court ruled against him 6-5, a close verdict on an issue that
has divided the country and raised tensions ahead of the elections.
In late January, an appeals court unanimously upheld the corruption and money laundering charges
against him, and he was handed a 12-year prison sentence. Lula da Silva
was initially found guilty of the charges in July 2017.
Lula da Silva strongly denied any wrongdoing. His defense said he was a victim of political persecution.
His conviction stemmed from a wide-ranging corruption investigation into the state-run oil company Petrobras, dubbed “Operation Car Wash.” The accusations against him emerged after he left office in 2011.
Lula
da Silva was accused of benefiting from the renovation of a triplex in a
beach town near Sao Paulo by the construction company OAS. The charges
were connected to 3.7 million reais’ ($1.1 million) worth of bribes
received from OAS through the beachfront apartment. In return, Lula da
Silva helped the builder acquire contracts from the oil company,
prosecutors charged.
Universally
known as Lula, Lula da Silva is a founding member of Brazil’s only
socialist political party, Partido dos Trabalhadores, the Workers’
Party.
He
won two terms as president, serving from October 2002 until January
2011. He was friends with the late Cuban leader Fidel Castro, who
supported his political career, and he attended Castro’s funeral last
December.
He left office with a 90% approval rating but was questioned by police about the corruption allegations in March 2016.
Lula da Silva’s wife, Marisa Leticia Lula da Silva, and six others also was charged. She died in February.
CNN