There seems to be no sector of public life in Portugal that is immune from the crime of corruption as Faro’s Judicial Police have indicted the president of the parish council of Estoi and a local builder for colluding to rip-off the local ratepayers.
The case is not proven but involves a specimin case of rigging a building arranged by the parish council president (PSD) so that one builder got the job - at a suitably inflated price.
An investigation carried out by Faro’s Directorate of the Judicial Police analysed events and contracts from 2012 when the president of the parish council, José de Paula Brito, issued a tender for building work that was awarded to the João Martinho da Cruz construction company for just under €100,000.
In a statement, the Department of Investigation and Penal Action in Faro reported that José de Paula Brito conspired with the businessman so that his building company got the job.
According to prosecutors, the two men arranged quotes from other companies with intentionally higher values which enabled the parish council to award the job to the businessman.
Both will appear in court, as may the treaurer who is accused of embezzlement.
