SAO PAULO, Brazil (Reuters) — Former Brazilian leader Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva emerged from the Sao Paulo residence of his Lula Institute on Thursday (July 12), with allies rallying around the ex-president to profess what he said was his innocence.
The ruling marked a stunning fall for Lula, one of the country’s most popular politicians, and a serious blow to his chances of a political comeback.
The former union leader, who won global praise for policies to reduce stinging inequality in Brazil, faces four more corruption trials and will remain free on appeal.
The verdict represented the highest-profile conviction after a sweeping corruption investigation that for over three years has rattled Brazil, revealing a sprawling system of the graft at top levels of business and government.
Judge Sergio Moro found Lula, 71, guilty of accepting 3.7 million reais ($1.2 million) worth of bribes from engineering firm OAS SA, the amount of money prosecutors said the company spent refurbishing a beach apartment for Lula in return for his help winning contracts with state oil company Petroleo Brasileiro.
The president of the Lula Institute, Paulo Tarciso Okamoto told media the former leader has no link to the property in question.
During his trial, Lula gave hours of defense, proclaiming his innocence and saying that it was politics and not the pilfering of public funds that put him on trial.
