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WORLD NEWSFriday 11 March 2016

Brazil prosecutors file charges against former president Mexico orders US
man held for trial
S. LEHMAN sold apartments at cost. is biased against the former The judge in the case must in girlfriend death
M. SAVARESE The case against Silva hing- president. now decide whether to
Associated Press es around a triplex in one Conserino and the other accept the charges and GABRIEL ALCOCER
SAO PAULO (AP) — Sao of the residential towers prosecutors at Thursday’s move forward with the Associated Press
Paulo state prosecutors said built by the cooperative, news conference insisted case. CANCUN, Mexico (AP) —
Thursday they filed money which prosecutors allege they are neutral and just Conserino said he had no A judge in Mexico has or-
laundering and criminal was destined for the former following the letter of the idea when that might hap- dered a U.S. man to stand
misrepresentation charges leader and his family. law. pen, suggesting that due trial in the death of his
to the sheer volume of the American girlfriend in the
State prosecutors Jose Carlos Blat, left, Cassio Roberto Conserino, center, and Fernando case it might take some Caribbean resort city of
Henrique de Moraes Araujo, responsible for the charges against Brazil’s former President Luiz time. Playa del Carmen.
Inacio Lula da Silva, arrive for a press conference at the Attorneys General office in Sao Paulo, Conserino declined to re- A prosecutor’s office em-
Brazil, Thursday, March 10, 2016. The state prosecutors have filed charges against the former spond to repeated ques- ployee said Thursday the
President in a money laundering investigation, putting further scrutiny on one of Brazil’s towering tions of whether prosecu- judge ordered John Love-
political figures who is being hounded by corruption allegations. tors had asked that Silva less to stand trial for alleg-
be provisionally detained. edly killing Tamra Turpin.
(AP Photo/Andre Penner) But Finance Minister Nel- The employee was not au-
son Barbosa told reporters thorized to be quoted by
against former President “While thousands of fami- “The investigation is sus- the Sao Paulo prosecutors name and spoke on con-
Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva be- lies lost their apartments tained with procedural and had indeed made such a dition of anonymity.
cause of evidence he and and saw their dreams of documental evidence,” request, which would also Turpin, 36, of the St. Louis,
his family unduly benefited becoming homeowners Coserino said. have to be signed off on by Missouri suburb of Union,
from a real estate scheme shattered, one of those in- The state public prosecu- the judge in the case. was found dead last week
that adversely affected vestigated received a tri- tors’ office brought the “This request is totally base- in a condo the couple had
thousands of Brazilian fami- plex,” Conserino said at a charges against Silva, as less,” Barbosa told reporters rented.
lies. news conference. well as money launder- gathered at a Sao Paulo
Lead prosecutor Cassio Silva has denied any wrong- ing charges against his hotel where the Insituto A forensic examination
Conserino said the former doing and said he is not the wife and one of his sons, Lula was holding a debate concluded she died of as-
president and his fam- owner of the apartment in late Wednesday. For Silva about the economy. Bar- phyxia by strangulation.
ily were swept up in a the coastal city of Guaruja. himself, conviction on the bosa added that “this po- But Turpin’s oldest sister,
yearslong investigation into In a statement Wednesday, two charges could carry a larization is doing much Jodi Mills, said Thursday
wrongdoing at a failed co- his not-for-profit Instituto maximum sentence of 13 harm to the Brazilian econ- by telephone in Missouri
operative in Sao Paulo that Lula suggested Conserino years in prison. omy.” that her family has learned
The Sao Paulo case is only through an attorney they
part of Silva’s legal woes. hired in Mexico that a
Last Friday, federal inves- judge there refused to al-
tigators said they were low as evidence a second
looking into whether reno- autopsy Loveless had re-
vations at the Guaruja quested on Turpin, using an
beachfront apartment and American pathologist.
another project at a coun- Mills, of Mexico, Missouri,
try house used by Silva and said she was unaware of
his family constituted favors what that secondary au-
in exchange for political topsy found.
benefit. Loveless told Mills that Tur-
Both places have under- pin overdosed on prescrip-
gone major renovations tion medications during a
paid for by construction suicide attempt after an
companies that for de- argument.
cades have had contracts Mills said she has contin-
with the federal govern- ued to keep an open mind
ment. about Loveless.
“I’m still in shock,” she said.
Venezuela withdraws top diplomat in Washington “I don’t know what evi-
dence they have, but I just
CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) “We don’t accept imposi- ratus that was responsible officials said that Obama want to get to the bottom
— President Nicolas Mad- tions or aggressions,” Mad- for cracking down on anti- had sent a letter to leaders of this and get all the facts.
uro this week announced uro said in a televised ad- government protests that of the U.S. legislatures say- I still have lots of questions,
that Venezuela’s top dip- dress announcing that the rocked Venezuela in 2104 ing the sanctions would be and I don’t think it’s fair
lomat in Washington would Venezuelan diplomat was and for pursuing charges renewed because the situ- (for me) to accuse John if
be called back to Caracas being recalled. “Enough of against leading oppo- ation in Venezuela had not I don’t have all the facts.”
to protest the decision to the arrogance.” nents. improved. “I know the facts that I’ve
renew a U.S. decree impos- In March of 2015, President The sanctions come after Maduro said the renewal received makes me puz-
ing sanctions on several Barack Obama slapped the U.S. Congress passed “is a stain for Obama be- zled and question (Love-
top officials from the South sanctions on seven Ven- legislation authorizing pen- cause he had plenty of less),” she added. “But I
American country. ezuelan officials, accusing alties that would freeze the opportunities to rectify the don’t want to wrongfully
The two nations haven’t them of perpetrating hu- assets and ban visas for situation but imposed arro- accuse someone. He’s got
exchanged ambassadors man rights violations and anyone accused of carry- gance.” family in this, too.
since 2010 and Maximilien public corruption in the ing out acts of violence or The countries have had Can you imagine being on
Sanchez Arvelaiz had been socialist-governed country. violating the human rights stormy relations since the the other side? I try to be a
Venezuela’s acting charge The individuals all came of those opposing Ven- late Hugo Chavez became fair person, and it’s not my
d’affaires in the U.S. capi- from the top echelon of ezuela’s government.On president of Venezuela in right to judge.”
tal. the state security appa- Wednesday, Venezuelan 1999