Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, the 35th and 39th president of Brazil was imprisoned at the ABC Metalworkers' Union in São Bernardo do Campo, in Greater São Paulo following his surrender to the Federal Police of Brazil (PF) on 7 April 2018 until the Supreme Federal Court (STF) overturned the arrest 8 November 2019.

On 8 March 2021, Justice Edson Fachin overturned Lula's convictions related to Operation Car Wash, ruling that the had tried the case outside its jurisdiction. More than a year later, on 28 April 2022, the United Nations Human Rights Committee published the conclusion of an analysis in which it pointed out that Sergio Moro had been biased in the trial of the cases against Lula.

Chronology On 12 July 2017, Sergio Moro, then a federal judge of , sentenced Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva to nine years and six months in prison for passive corruption and money laundering in a criminal case involving a triplex apartment in Guarujá, on the of the state of São Paulo. In the second instance, the sentence was increased to 12 years and one month, after a unanimous vote. Then, on April 5, Moro issued the arrest warrant. In April 2019, in a unanimous decision, the 5th Panel of the Superior Court of Justice (STJ) upheld Lula's conviction and reduced the sentence for passive corruption and money laundering from 12 years and one month to eight years and ten months in prison. The triplex case was investigated as part of Operation Car Wash. Lula served his sentence in Curitiba, capital of Paraná, in the building of the Regional Superintendency of the Federal Police in Paraná. In August 2018, the United Nations Human Rights Committee requested that Brazil guarantee Lula the right to exercise his political rights while in prison, including access to members of his party and the media and participation in the 2018 presidential election in Brazil. The Brazilian Foreign Ministry questioned the Committee and referred the decision to the Judiciary.

On 8 March 2021, Justice Edson Fachin overturned Lula's convictions related to Operation Car Wash, ruling that the had tried the case outside its jurisdiction, based on a previous decision by the Second Panel of the Supreme Federal Court (STF) in the case of Transpetro, a Brazilian company linked to Petrobras, responsible for fuel transportation and logistics, which operates in the import and export of oil and oil products, gas, and ethanol. It was determined that the case should be tried in Brasília. As a result, Lula regained his political rights and the legal proceedings against him were transferred to the . Subsequently, the Guarujá triplex case, which led to Lula's imprisonment, was dismissed by the court.

On 28 April 2022, the United Nations Human Rights Committee published the conclusion of an analysis in which it pointed out that Sergio Moro had been biased in the trial of the cases against Lula. According to the Committee's decision, Lula's political rights were violated in 2018 after he was prevented from participating in that year's presidential elections. The Committee determined that Brazil must present the measures adopted to repair the damage caused to the former president within 180 days and prevent other people from being targeted by similar proceedings in the future. Lula was the first former president of Brazil to be imprisoned for a conviction for a common crime. Before him, six other former presidents of the country were imprisoned: Hermes da Fonseca, Washington Luís, Artur Bernardes, Café Filho, Jânio Quadros, and Juscelino Kubitschek, all for explicit political reasons.

Overview

List of criminal cases involving Lula The triplex case was one of several cases in which Lula was involved. Lula was a defendant in ten criminal cases in total, including some in which he has already been acquitted or convicted. Some of these criminal cases are part of Operation Car Wash. #JudgeReason / ChargesDateStatus / Outcome1Ricardo LeiteThe judge accepted the complaint filed by the Federal Public Prosecutor's Office (MPF) and charged Lula with obstruction of justice. Also charged were former senator Delcídio do Amaral (independent-MS), Delcídio's former chief of staff Diogo Ferreira, banker André Esteves, lawyer Édson Ribeiro, cattle rancher , and his son, Maurício Bumlai. The former president was accused of trying to prevent former Petrobras director from signing a plea bargain agreement.29 July 2016Acquitted2Sergio MoroAccepted MPF complaint, making Lula a defendant for passive corruption and money laundering. Lula allegedly received over R$3 million in bribes from construction company in the form of renovations to a triplex apartment in Guarujá, plus storage of personal goods.20 September 2016Convicted in three instances (initially 9 years and 6 months by Moro), but convictions annulled by the Supreme Federal Court (STF) due to lack of jurisdiction in Curitiba and partiality of Moro; case later archived in Brasília.3Vallisney de Souza OliveiraHe fully accepted the Federal Prosecutor's Office's complaint against former President Lula for the crimes of influence peddling, criminal organization, money laundering, and passive corruption in , which investigates suspicious business deals in Angola involving money from the Brazilian Development Bank (BNDES) funds.13 October 2016Acquitted on some charges; action later terminated/closed.4Vallisney de Souza OliveiraAccepted MPF complaint in , making Lula a defendant for influence peddling, money laundering, and criminal organization related to the purchase of 36 Swedish Gripen fighters and extension of tax incentives via Provisional Measure 627.17 December 2016Criminal action suspended.5Sergio MoroA new complaint filed by the Car Wash task force against former President Lula has been accepted. With this decision, Lula becomes a defendant for the crimes of passive corruption and money laundering. He was accused of receiving kickbacks from Odebrecht for the purchase of an apartment in São Bernardo do Campo and another property in São Paulo. According to the indictment, this location was intended for the .19 December 2016Criminal action suspended.6Sergio MoroHe accepted another complaint against Lula, related to the case of a ranch in Atibaia, a city located in the interior of the state of São Paulo. Lula was accused of corruption and money laundering in the ranch case. According to the indictment, the former president benefited from R$1.02 million in renovations to the property, which was frequented by Lula and his family. The renovations were allegedly paid for by the contractors Odebrecht and OAS.1 August 2017Convicted in two instances, but the conviction was overturned and the complaint dismissed.7Vallisney de Souza OliveiraAccused of selling provisional measures granting tax incentives to automakers during his presidency. The judge indicted him for passive corruption.1 September 2017Acquitted.8Vallisney de Souza OliveiraHe accepted a complaint filed by the Attorney General's Office in 2017 against Lula, initiating criminal proceedings and making him a defendant for the eighth time, in a case that became known as “Quadrilhão do PT” (PT Gang). Former President Dilma Rousseff also became a defendant, among others.23 November 2018Acquitted.9Lula was accused of receiving one million reais, through a donation to the Lula Institute, to mediate discussions between the government of Equatorial Guinea and the Brazilian group ARG, with the aim of establishing the company in the country.14 December 2018Criminal proceedings closed.10Federal Court of São PauloLula was accused of international influence peddling on behalf of the construction company OAS. The accusation stated that Lula had given a speech in Costa Rica in 2011 in order to influence the country's leaders to do business with OAS.13 September 2021Case archived.Updated in January 2026. Most of the Car Wash cases involving Lula were overturned by the Supreme Court in 2021 due to jurisdictional issues and judicial bias; subsequent cases in Brasília or elsewhere resulted in acquittals, dismissals, or suspensions due to lack of evidence or procedural reasons.

Background In March 2010, Rio de Janeiro newspaper O Globo published a report about an apartment in the city of Guarujá, in the state of São Paulo, that allegedly belonged to then-President Lula. There were no suspicions of illegality at the time; the report focused on a multiple year delay in constructing the apartment complex, and its construction being taken over by .

Operation Car Wash

In March 2014, an anti-corruption probe nicknamed Operation Car Wash () began; it would become the largest anti-corruption operation in the history of Brazil, revealing corruption and illegal payments in procurements of public works, many related to Petrobras. Several companies – Odebrecht, Camargo Corrêa, Construtora OAS, among others – were accused of bribing Petrobras employees and higher-ups to only choose their companies for Petrobras procurements; the companies would then decide, among themselves, on an overpriced invoice and pocket the difference. Those bribes were initially made in cash, but would later take the form of offshore transfers or the paying off of properties.

The investigation expanded through plea deals, such that over 200 arrests and 1 thousand search and seizure operations were made, recovering over R$4 billion in total (over US$1 billion).

Societal context

Operation Car Wash coincided with an explosive growth in what was termed "" (an "anti-Workers' Party" sentiment) around 2014. This was motivated in part by a dissatisfaction with the economy: during the latest few years of a Worker's Party government, the Brazilian real had been losing strength in the USD exchange. In March 2015, for example, it hit a decade-long high, at USD$1 = R$3.16.

Protests broke out throughout the country calling for then-president Dilma Rousseff's removal from office, be it through an impeachment or military intervention, as part of a movement called "" (). An April 2015 poll of protestors put over 90%, a majority of which were middle- and upper-class White Brazilians, believing the Workers' Party did a "great harm" to Brazil; and 37% believing minorities such as Afro-Brazilians, women and homosexuals had "too many rights" in Brazil.

Lula involvement

In March 2016, Lula was the target of a coerced summons () to testify on suspicions of receiving bribes by Construtora OAS and Odebrecht in the form of renovations of an apartment in Guarujá and a country house in Atibaia, both in the state of São Paulo. Lula was also under investigation for money received as donations and payments for lectures.

At the time, Lula criticized the coercion aspect of the summons, stating he wouldn't have refused to testify if asked. He also stated that were Federal Police to find a single real of his came from embezzlement, he didn't deserve to be a part of the Workers' Party. Lula further criticized that his lawyers were not informed of "anything", while some in the news media had prior knowledge of the intricacies of the investigation: "it's regretful that a portion of the Brazilian Judiciary is working in association with the press".

Lula also justified what was seen as suspiciously high prices for his lectures: "People wanted Lula to speak on the things he did in Brazil. The miracle he did to approve Prouni, Fies, to bring energy to 15 million of the poor in this country. That's why I became the most expensive speaker in the world, alongside Bill Clinton. [...] I don't have a mongrel complex. I know what I did for the country".

Accusation