Activists leave triplex apartment said to be owned by ex-President Lula

After having occupied the property for two hours, members of the Homeless Workers’ Movement and the People Without Fear Front left the triplex apartment complex—said to belong to former President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva—in coastal Guarujá, São Paulo.

Demonstrators had arrived early in the morning and fixed a movement flag and banners to the balcony wall. “If [the property] belongs to Lula, it belongs to us,” one of them reads.

The activists protested against Lula’s conviction for allegedly having accepted the apartment as bribe, in exchange for favors benefiting construction firm OAS.

On his Twitter account, Guilherme Boulos, coordinator of the Homeless Movement and the presidential hopeful soon to be officially named candidate by his Socialism and Freedom Party (PSOL), described the action by the Military Police as arbitrary, as no warrant had been issued.

“The police set a deadline for evacuating the triplex apartment, or else all occupants were to be arrested. It was evacuated, and the message was understood. Clearly they had no warrant: Who has the right to request repossession?” Boulos questioned.

Former President Lula has been held at a Federal Police prison unit in Curitiba since April 7. The triplex apartment complex lies at the center of the investigation that led to his imprisonment over corruption and money laundering charges. Lula was sentenced to 12 years and one month in jail. The property, as well as renovation works—estimated to add up to $700 thousand—are believed have to have been granted as bribe by construction company OAS in exchange for being favored in public licensing contracts.

Federal prosecutors in Paraná state reported that the apartment is now available for auction. Who has the right to ask for repossession, however, is yet to be known.

Translated by Fabrício Ferreira