JBS owners' $504 million no longer frozen
Businessman Joesley Batista, owner of J&F, the holding company that owns meatpacking giant JBS.
Brothers Joesley and Wesley Batista, owners of the J&F group, had $504 million of their assets unfrozen after a ruling by Judge Olindo Menezes.
The blockage had been ruled by a federal court in Brasília at the request of federal prosecutors as part of Operation Bullish, a probe into money embezzlement at the National Economic and Social Development Bank (BNDES) favoring JBS, one of the firms controlled by J&F.
On the occasion, the court accepted the arguments presented by the prosecutors and the police, who feared the dissipation of the assets, which could make the return of the funds embezzled impossible—an estimated $378 million.
The police also reported that the request to terminate the plea bargain deal with Joesley Batista could lead to more of his assets being frozen.
All justifications were rejected by Menezes, who argued that ending the plea bargain deal is still being studied by the Supreme Court, which means the blockage should not be expanded.
The decision does not entail another $18 million, which remain frozen. The increase in the freezing of funds had affected other members of the Batista family, including patriarch José Batista Júnior.
In September, then Prosecutor-General Rodrigo Janot had revoked the legal shield granted by him to Joesley Batista and Ricardo Saud, former JBS executive. Janot had decided that Batista and Saud had omitted relevant information from the authorities in the plea bargain deal.
Translated by Fabrício Ferreira
Fonte: JBS owners' $504 million no longer frozen
