Former Reag Owner Signs Plea Bargain in Operation Compliance Zero

The Prosecutor General's Office (PGR) has signed a plea bargain agreement with João Carlos Mansur, the former owner of the fund manager Reag. The agreement is now awaiting homologation by Supreme Court Minister André Mendonça. Mansur is a central figure in Operation Compliance Zero, which investigates a multi billion real fraud scheme involving Banco Master. The investigation suggests that funds managed by Reag were used in financial triangulations to inflate assets or hide the final destination of funds. Mansur provided 17 annexes of information focusing on former banker Daniel Vorcaro, and mentioned politicians including Senator Jaques Wagner and former Mayor ACM Neto. Specifically, one report notes a payment of 63,300 reais by Reag for concert tickets for relatives of Senator Wagner.

Simultaneously, Daniel Vorcaro, the owner of Banco Master, has faced setbacks in his own attempts to cooperate. The PGR recently requested the archiving of complaints made by Vorcaro, stating he failed to provide concrete evidence or a legally delimited fact. In a deposition to Minister Mendonça's office, Vorcaro claimed his intended collaboration focused on individuals within the current government's inner circle. However, he did not mention his involvement in funding the film Dark Horse, a biopic of former President Jair Bolsonaro. Vorcaro has alleged that his arrest was an intimidation tactic to prevent him from speaking.

Reag was liquidated by the Central Bank in January due to grave violations of financial norms. The firm is also linked to Operation Carbono Oculto, which investigates the infiltration of the PCC organized crime group into the formal economy. Investigators suspect that approximately 700 million reais from companies linked to organized crime were laundered through Reag funds into Banco Master portfolios. Mansur has previously denied irregularities, claiming Reag had strong compliance and was penalized for being large and independent.