Brazilian police raid Lula ally Senator Jaques Wagner in Banco Master corruption probe

Operation targets Lula's Senate leader

Federal police carried out 18 search and seizure warrants across three Brazilian states on Thursday, targeting Senator Jaques Wagner, who leads President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva's legislative bloc in the Senate. The raids, authorized by Supreme Court Justice André Mendonça, are part of the 'Compliance Zero' probe into the collapsed Banco Master and its owner Daniel Vorcaro's suspected illicit ties to political and judicial figures.

Allegations of undue advantages

Investigators suspect Wagner, 75, received over a million dollars in economic benefits, including an apartment in Salvador valued at 2.5 million reais (about $490,000), cash payments exceeding 600,000 euros, and use of private jets. In exchange, he is alleged to have pushed Senate passage of a constitutional amendment that would have raised the ceiling of a bank-funded insurance fund, though that effort failed. Police also reportedly seized $49,000 in cash during Thursday's searches.

“I never received money from anyone, much less from Master.”

Political reactions and Wagner's defense

Wagner told Band News that President Lula called him to express solidarity, saying the president maintained "absolute confidence" in him. The senator dismissed the operation as selective, noting other suspects with far larger sums allegedly received had not faced similar searches. PT president Edinho Silva said the party remains confident Wagner will clarify the facts. Senate President Davi Alcolumbre defended the presumption of innocence and lamented the polarization that turns every operation into a partisan weapon.

“Stay strong, this is an attempt to destabilize you, but count on my trust.”

“It is very sad, everyone is guilty and convicted before being judged.”

The Banco Master scandal timeline

Banco Master was liquidated by Brazil's central bank in November after racking up roughly $7 billion in debt to 800,000 depositors, who were later reimbursed by the state. The scandal quickly broadened into a probe of Vorcaro's relationships with politicians across the spectrum. Vorcaro was arrested in March. Senator Ciro Nogueira is suspected of taking kickbacks in exchange for favoring the bank, while Flávio Bolsonaro, son of former president Jair Bolsonaro and a leading opposition candidate for the October election, faces accusations that he funneled tens of millions of reais from the bank to finance a film about his father.

Re-election backdrop

Lula is seeking a fourth non-consecutive term in October, and the raid on his government's Senate leader brings the scandal closer to his inner circle. Flávio Bolsonaro seized on the operation, claiming the PT had been "imploded" by the federal police. The affair now ensnares figures from the left and right alike, testing a deeply polarized political environment.