Brazil's Supreme Court has plunged further into an institutional crisis, with two of its most prominent justices now formally requesting major sanctions against each other. The conflict involves Justice Alexandre de Moraes, 57, who became widely known for leading the case that resulted in the imprisonment of former President Jair Bolsonaro last year for an attempted coup, and his colleague Justice Andre Mendonca, 53, the court's first evangelical member, who was appointed by Bolsonaro.
The animosity between the two justices stems from a sprawling federal investigation into financial fraud surrounding the collapsed Banco Master and its disgraced owner, Daniel Vorcaro. This investigation has increasingly ensnared various political figures ahead of the upcoming October elections. Tensions escalated significantly on Tuesday when Mendonca unsealed segments of a federal police investigation revealing dozens of intercepted messages from Vorcaro, which indicated the banker frequently sought advice from de Moraes. In one message, Vorcaro wrote, “I am grateful to you for my life,” and in another, he pleaded, “For the love of God, see if you can block all these evil (measures against Banco Master).”
These findings have added to existing suspicions regarding de Moraes, particularly after federal police discovered that his wife provided legal services to Banco Master as part of a 130 million reais ($25 million) contract. These revelations triggered a wave of pressure from politicians, the media, and legal experts for de Moraes to resign. Even presidential candidate Flávio Bolsonaro, who has been implicated in the Banco Master scandal for allegedly receiving about $21 million to fund a film on his father's life, publicly urged the Supreme Court justice to leave his position.
The crisis deepened on Wednesday when Brazilian media reported that Mendonca had also privately met with Vorcaro last year. Mendonca initially stated he only listened to what the former bank owner had to say in a “similar dialogue with other members of the Supreme Court to discuss the same matter.” However, Mendonca later confirmed on Thursday that he had held a more recent meeting with Vorcaro. Earlier this month, he questioned the jailed banker without authorization from the full court—a requirement for investigating one of its members—and without the presence of any federal police agents or prosecutors. Mendonca defended his actions by claiming Vorcaro alleged he had been mistreated by police, an accusation that Brazil's attorney general has already dismissed.
Late on Thursday, de Moraes took swift and unexpected action by asking Chief Justice Luiz Edson Fachin to investigate his colleague's conduct. De Moraes characterized the actions as politically driven and argued that Mendonca committed an impeachable offense for interviewing Vorcaro under those secretive conditions. Brazil's Senate, which holds the authority to impeach Supreme Court justices, currently has dozens of requests for impeachment proceedings against de Moraes, while only a few have been filed against Mendonca. Brazilian media reported on Friday that Mendonca has also asked Fachin to suspend de Moraes from the court due to the revelations from earlier this week.
Chief Justice Fachin stated on Friday that he will request formal clarifications from Mendonca, de Moraes, Attorney General Paulo Gonet Attorney General Paulo Gonet—who also appears in Vorcaro's messages—and federal police director Andrei Rodrigues. Speaking at a ceremony in the presidential palace with President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, who also called for no one to be spared from investigations, Fachin said he would do “what is right, in the time and in the shape that the legal order requires.” De Moraes and Mendonca, who sit next to each other in the court, did not exchange words during sittings on Wednesday and Thursday and are expected to meet again next week as the impasse continues.
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