Police suspect gang, Casares’ protégé led VIP box scheme | OneFootball

Investigations into the clandestine exploitation of São Paulo’s VIP boxes have gained a new element. A report from the Department of Police for the Protection of Citizenship (DPPC) indicates that Rita de Cássia Adriana Prado, Mara Casares, Douglas Schwartzmann, and Márcio Carlomagno would be part of a “professionalized criminal association,” with a fixed profit-sharing scheme that allegedly harmed the club for nearly two years.

The information was initially reported by the portal ‘Globo Esporte‘.

The document is based on the analysis of a notebook seized in January at Adriana’s house, which investigators consider a key piece for understanding the structure’s operation.

“This document is the link that unites Carlomagno, the influence of Mara and Schwartzmann, and Adriana’s operation […] in a systemic mechanism of looting the assets,” the report states.

The main new development is the inclusion of Carlomagno in the core of the operation. Previously, he only appeared in third-party statements as the person responsible for providing the space, but now he is described as part of the informal partnership.

The notes attributed to Adriana are interpreted as a direct record of the division of roles and revenues. In one excerpt, she lists those involved as “partners” and details the split: “25% for each Mara, Márcio, Douglas, me.”

For the police, this constitutes more than a one-off agreement, indicating an organized and ongoing structure. The report states that this is “material proof that the profit from the clandestine exploitation of the VIP boxes […] was not an occasional bonus,” but rather a mechanism with a “fixed and systemic corruption rate.”

Another relevant point is the attempt to reconstruct the duration of the scheme. Based on the notes, investigators defined a period from the Coldplay concert in March 2023 to Shakira’s performance in February of the following year.

On one of the pages, Adriana writes “All without problems until February 2025,” followed by references such as “email to Mara” and “Coldplay show,” which is interpreted as a timeline of the operation, indicating that the exploitation was ongoing without incidents up to that moment.

The investigators’ reading also positions Adriana as a central figure, responsible for the “logistical and financial operation,” including the resale of tickets and distribution of profits. In another section, she outlines the roles and positions of those involved within the club, even referring to Carlomagno as “vice-president,” which, although formally incorrect — he was the club’s general superintendent — is seen as indicative of the weight he held within the structure. At the time, he was considered a significant name in the internal political scene, regarded as a potentially viable candidate in the presidential election in December.

The notebook also contains elements that, in the police’s view, indicate awareness of the scheme’s illegality. At one point, Adriana questions: “Is corruption only on their part? What could come back on me?” In another, there is a crossed-out passage with the phrase “I don’t know anything” followed by the note “I knew it existed.” For investigators, this is an indication that she considered and dismissed the idea of claiming ignorance, serving as a kind of confession.

There are also signs of internal rupture. The notes suggest that Adriana had planned to leave the group and even change her position, seeking to act “legally” within the club. At the same time, she records dissatisfaction with the others involved — “You kicked me out of SPFC” — and mentions strategies to sell information, in an attempt to protect herself.

The police interpret this move as the transition from an active participant to a potential collaborator. Another highlighted aspect is Adriana’s expressed fear for her own safety. The phrase “Threatening my life and physical integrity” appears in the notes and is read as a sign that she felt pressured at a certain point in the process.

For investigators, the entirety of the seized material is sufficient to characterize her as a central figure in the association.

Schwartzmann’s lawyers spoke of a “selective leak of documents taken out of context” and classified the material as incapable of meeting the “minimum requirement of legal reliability.”

Adriana’s defense, in turn, emphasized that the report is part of an investigation under seal and that “the elements produced […] do not have the strength to affirm any guilt or innocence,” reinforcing the need for full access to the case files.

Mara Casares’s defense also pointed out that the document is “merely interpretative in nature,” based on “hypotheses” and “conjectures.”

Contacted through the State Department of Public Security, under the management of Tarcísio de Freitas (Republicanos), the Civil Police limited itself to informing that the case remains under seal at the DPPC and that “investigations are ongoing to clarify the facts.”

Carlomagno’s lawyers, in turn, stated that they had not had access to the report, but that he “vehemently denies any relationship” with Adriana and with the commercialization of VIP boxes.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇧🇷 here.