Courts Sentence Ex-Senator for Evading R$57 Million in Taxes in Brazil

On February 8, 2013, O Estado de São Paulo reported that a federal judge in Santo André, São Paulo state, sentenced former Federal Senator Luiz Estevão de Oliveira Neto and his wife, Cleicy, to four years, eight months in prison for tax evasion. The couple failed to pay taxes to the tune of R$57 million for their business. Oliveira Neto was able to delay the trial for nearly four years due to travel concerns and evading hearings. Judge José Denilson Branco affirmed the sentence, in which he said there was a deliberate attempt to suppress reporting millions of reais’ worth of income and assets.  Read Article