By John Letzing
ZURICH--Swiss authorities say they have frozen hundreds of
millions of dollars in assets tied to a corruption scandal at
Petróleo Brasileiro SA, and have unearthed hundreds of accounts at
Switzerland's banks used to funnel bribes as part of the alleged
wrongdoing at Brazil's state oil company.
In a statement on Wednesday, Switzerland's Office of the
Attorney General said it has ordered the freezing of roughly $400
million in assets related to the scandal at Petrobras, and that
ongoing probes have identified more than 300 accounts at more than
30 "banking institutions" in the country that the officials say
were apparently used to process bribery payments now under
investigation in Brazil.
The attorney general's office said it has arranged for more than
$120 million in frozen assets to be repatriated to their "rightful
owners." Since April of last year, the office said it has opened
investigations based on allegations of money laundering and
corruption at Petrobras, focused on eight Brazilian citizens. A
spokeswoman for the attorney general's office declined to comment
on the identities of the Brazilians. A Petrobras spokesman didn't
immediately respond to a request for comment. In the past,
Petrobras has said it was a victim of the alleged scheme and that
it is cooperating with investigators.
Switzerland, which protects the identities of bank clients with
its secrecy laws, has in recent years sought to combat its image as
a convenient location for corrupt foreign officials and executives
to hide ill-gotten wealth. On Wednesday, Swiss officials said their
Petrobras-related actions reflect the country's intention "to take
a stand against the misuse of its financial center for criminal
purposes."
Federal prosecutors in Brazil are investigating some of that
country's top lawmakers as part of a continuing probe into
corruption at Petrobras. Earlier this month, Brazil's Supreme Court
gave prosecutors a green light to investigate 47 politicians,
including Senate President Renan Calheiros, as part of the dragnet.
Many lawmakers have denied any wrongdoing. Earlier this month, a
post on Mr. Calheiros's official Twitter account said: "As for me I
will give all explanations in the light of day and provide whatever
information the courts desire."
On Monday, prosecutors filed related corruption and money
laundering charges against Workers' Party Treasurer João Vaccari
Neto, and former Petrobras executive Renato Duque. Prosecutors
allege that Mr. Vaccari solicited illegal campaign donations from
Mr. Duque, who was the third former Petrobras executive charged as
part of the investigation.
Mr. Duque's lawyer has said his client didn't commit any
wrongdoing. A lawyer representing Mr. Vaccari has said Mr. Vaccari
denies any wrongdoing.
Will Connors contributed to this article.
Write to John Letzing at john.letzing@wsj.com
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