In an interview with JOTA, criminal defense lawyer Rodrigo Falk Fragoso, PhD in Criminal Law from USP and professor of Criminal Law in the postgraduate program at PUC-Rio, analyzed whether Attorney General of the Republic Paulo Gonet should recuse himself in the Master case after being mentioned in a Federal Police report. For the partner at Fragoso Advogados, the “institutionally most prudent” solution would be to leave decisions on issues related to the case under the responsibility of Deputy Attorney General Hindemburgo Chateaubriand Pereira Diniz Filho.
Rodrigo emphasized that a recusal statement by Gonet should not be seen as an admission of guilt. “It is a precaution of an institutional nature, not a premature judgment on the Attorney General’s conduct,” he told JOTA journalist Letícia Mori. For the lawyer, the act would serve to preserve the independence of the investigation and ensure that anyone who might have personal interests does not participate in decisions regarding its validity, dismissal, or further inquiry.
“It is necessary to separate two issues. One thing would be to assert that the Attorney General of the Republic committed any wrongdoing, for which evidence would obviously be required. Another, entirely different matter, is determining whether he should continue to act personally in decisions regarding facts that have come to involve his own name or members of his family,” concluded Rodrigo.
