(ATR) Brazilian and French authorities are searching Brazilian Olympic Committee President Carlos Nuzman’s home for evidence related to a vote buying scheme ahead of the 2009 IOC Session.
A warrant was executed early this morning. The headquarters of the Brazilian Olympic Committee were also searched by the Brazilian Federal Police.
The police operation, entitled "unfair play," raided the residence for evidence related to a payment made by Brazilian businessman Arthur Cesar de Menezes Soares Filho to Lamine Diack’s son ahead of the 2009 IOC Session.
Investigators say the money was distributed to IOC members to vote for the candidacy of the Rio 2016 Olympics.
Investigators from France pursuing the Diack connection are said to have participated in the raid.
An arrest warrant was also issued for Soares, who lives in Miami, and his business partner Eliane Pereira Cavalcante.
Requests for comment from Rio 2016, the Brazilian Olympic Committee, and the IOC were not immediately returned.
Nuzman will testify before the Brazilian Federal Police and surrender his passport according to Folha. The outlet reported that prosecutors said "without the presence and negotiation of Carlos Arthur Nuzman, the ingenious and complex corrupt relationship narrated here could not achieve the success that it has achieved."
Brazilian authorities secured the warrant for Nuzman’s house as part of the broader Lava Jato investigation. Numerous officials connected to the Rio Olympics, including former Rio State Governor Sergio Cabral and businessman Eike Batista, have been arrested as part of the Lava Jato investigation.
The Federal Public Ministry asked Brazilian courts to block $320 million in assets for Nuzman, Soares, and Cavalcante according to outlet G1. The ministry also is investigating whether Nuzman secured Russian citizenship in exchange for his vote for the Sochi 2014 Olympics. That information came from testimony by Eric Maleson, the former head of the Brazilian Confederation of Ice Sports, to French authorities.
Written by Aaron Bauer
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