New operation reveals fraud of R$126 million against more than 100 thousand INSS retirees

The second phase of Operation Retomada, carried out this Friday the 16th, brought to light a fraud scheme that caused losses of more than 126 million reais to more than 100 thousand retirees and pensioners throughout Brazil. The investigation is being conducted by the Public Prosecutor's Office of Paraíba (Gaeco/MPPB), with support from the Comptroller General's Office and the Civil Police.

According to the Public Prosecutor's Office, 11 fictitious associations filed lawsuits to obtain favorable decisions illegally. The aim was to apply undue discounts on social security benefits, mainly for the elderly, without the victims' consent. The network involved judges, lawyers, public servants and shell entities.

Most of those affected receive retirement or pension payments from the National Institute of Social Security (INSS). The group used manipulated court decisions to justify the monthly deductions, under the false claim that they were association contributions. In practice, the amounts referred to loans with abusive interest rates, taken out without the beneficiaries' knowledge. The INSS did not participate in the fraud, but was used as an instrument to make the deductions effective.

The associations attracted elderly people with the promise of non-existent services. The group also obtained court decisions that suspended installments on old loans, which opened the way for new loans — without paying off the previous ones — increasing the victims' debt.

The lawsuits were filed in specific districts, where the group exerted influence. Many cases were processed in secret, which made it difficult for victims to access information and prevented the Public Prosecutor's Office from acting.

“ It was also found that legal actions were being taken against airline loyalty programs, whose decisions aimed to illegitimately guarantee the reactivation of expired credits or the reversal of contractual policies of the programs, generating undue financial benefits for the participants of the scheme ,” reported the CGU.

Judge Glauco Coutinho, from the district of Gurinhém (PB), was removed from office. Three lawyers are also targets of the investigations, according to Gaeco.