Faro Council - police raids at homes and offices for evidence of corruption and embezzlement

Paul Rees 10 July 2019

farocamara Faro Council's operations are at the centre of raids by police investigating a saddening, yet all too familiar litany of corruption and embezzlement.

So far, four people have been made official suspects after AMBIFARO, Gestão de Equipamentos Municipais, E.M., Faro’s municipal market and a lawyer's office were raided, as well as suspects’ homes, in the search for evidence.

The Judicial Police is looking into crimes of corruption, economic participation in business, embezzlement and fraud.

In a statement, the PJ reported that operation Mercado Aberto (Open Market) will continue for the, "determination of all criminal conduct, its scope and its agents."

Pointing to the status of at least one of the suspects, the PJ added the crime of ‘abuse of power.’

All suspects are innocent until proved guilty but the fact that the Public Ministry asked for the Tuesday afternoon raids indicates strong suspicion that at least parts of yet another Algarve Council is riddled with corruption.

Few of the region’s Councils have avoided investigation with Silves andf Portimão leading the pack for blatant fiddles that left ratepayers picking up the tab.

Albufeira, Olhão, Tavira, Aljezur but the appalling theft at Portimão Council under former mayor Manuel da Luz, is an outstanding example of the way public servants and local business owners manage help themselves to public funds, often with impunity.

Comments

-2 #5 Darcy 2019-07-25 09:37

Quoting Maxwell:

Far more interesting will knowing how much warning the heavyweights got beforehand from the now concerned public administration - police and prosecutors - that have tolerated this nonsense going on under their noses for years. Many actively participating. All that is needed is the time to destroy a home computer hard drive, the phone sim or shred papers and diaries. Any paperwork tying a dodgy heavyweight to a "crime" at the Municipal end needs matching proof at the other end - that, for example, a message did arrive, money got passed over or meeting take place. Otherwise Impunity will continue to rule.

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Do you have proof of "dodgy heavyweight crime at the Municipal" or is this your usual blustering nonsense.

+10 #4 Maxwell 2019-07-11 17:08

Far more interesting will knowing how much warning the heavyweights got beforehand from the now concerned public administration - police and prosecutors - that have tolerated this nonsense going on under their noses for years. Many actively participating. All that is needed is the time to destroy a home computer hard drive, the phone sim or shred papers and diaries. Any paperwork tying a dodgy heavyweight to a "crime" at the Municipal end needs matching proof at the other end - that, for example, a message did arrive, money got passed over or meeting take place. Otherwise Impunity will continue to rule.

+8 #3 Jack Reacher 2019-07-10 22:40

Why is this even news? Everyone knows it hhappens all over the country..not just Algarve councils.

+4 #2 Darcy 2019-07-10 11:10

Hopefully the
Lets hope the Judicial Police continue to uncover these types of abuse of powe, as these crimes will only serve the two or three people at the top of the chain, and ruin the lives of thousands of people in the community and also the business

-2 #1 sagalaut 2019-07-10 10:52

And in other news.... :zzz