Brazil’s Federal Police indicted 13 people over alleged links to a scheme that moved money from fuel-sector crimes through investment funds, brokerages and fintechs. The Operação Quasar inquiry closed on Wednesday, September 30, 2026. The case concerns alleged infiltration of Brazil’s formal economy and financial system. The findings remain accusations; no court had ruled on their merits.
What Police Say the Scheme Did
Police said the 13 assisted a scheme managed by businessmen Mohamad Hussein Mourad, known as “Primo,” and Roberto Augusto Leme da Silva, known as “Beto Louco.” Both had been fugitives since 2025 and were among eight targets placed on Interpol’s red diffusion list after they fled before an August 2025 operation.
The indictees face accusations of criminal organisation, money laundering and fraudulent management. The Federal Prosecution Service (MPF) must decide in the coming days whether to file formal charges, order further investigation or archive the case. Defense positions for the 13 weren’t public at publication.
Police named Artur Martins de Figueiredo, Caio Henrique Hyppolito Galvani, Camila Cristina de Moura Silva, Danilo Augusto Tonin Elena, João Carlos Falbo Mansur, João Eduardo Gomes Santiago, Luis Fernando de Almeida, Luiz Felipe Sousa Leão Volani, Marcelo Dias de Moraes, Paula Rios Borges, Ramon Pessoa Dantas, Rogério Garcia Peres and Silvano Gersztel. Investigators cited messages, contracts, spreadsheets, forensic accounting and bank statements that they obtained under judicial authorization.
From Fuel Trade to Financial Accounts
Operação Quasar grew out of Operação Carbono Oculto, a broader inquiry into the PCC’s alleged movement into the fuel trade and financial system. Investigators described a chain from fuel imports through production and distribution to gas-station sales. They said the fuel was adulterated with methanol along the way, while illicit cash entered fintechs and investment funds to buy companies, property and luxury goods.
In the related “Tank” investigation, police estimated that the stations analyzed alone received at least R$133.8 million, about US$25.6 million, in divided deposits. Police said large transfers among stations belonging to different corporate groups indicated that the organization controlled them.
In the Quasar phase, police said proceeds from tax evasion and fuel-sector crimes entered the financial system and moved through accounts and funds. Investigators attributed the illegalities to the economic group formed by Aster Petróleo and Copape Produtos de Petróleo. They said the structure concealed the money’s true owners and gave assets built by organized crime a legal appearance, with fund companies taking part.
What Remains Unresolved
Operação Carbono Oculto began in August 2025. Authorities described it as the largest operation ever conducted against organized crime’s infiltration of Brazil’s formal economy. About 1,400 agents executed around 200 search warrants against roughly 350 targets in eight states, including fund managers and companies on Avenida Faria Lima, São Paulo’s financial hub.
Some indictees had appeared in earlier reporting about the collapsed Banco Master, but the Quasar indictment didn’t accuse them in connection with the bank. Valor Econômico reported the previous year that Artur Martins de Figueiredo, a director at Prime Aviation and linked to the managers Trustee and Banvox, had been named in the infiltration investigation. João Carlos Falbo Mansur founded Reag Investimentos, a firm investigated over funds allegedly used to inflate Banco Master’s assets. Those reported links came from earlier press investigations, not the Quasar indictment.
The division between police and state-level investigations the previous year exposed a rivalry for prominence between President Lula’s federal government and Governor Tarcísio de Freitas. That dispute could return as prosecutors decide how far the financial-system charges will go. Police hadn’t confirmed the total sums moved by those indicted, the full list of funds and companies involved, or whether more rounds of indictments were planned.