Businesswoman Roberta Luchsinger, a longtime friend of Fábio Luís Lula da Silva, the eldest son of President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, has denied acting as a financial intermediary in a federal probe into alleged fraud at Brazil’s National Social Security Institute (INSS).
In an interview with Folha de S.Paulo and in testimony to the Federal Police, Luchsinger said she was being “criminalized” because of her friendship with the president’s son, widely known as Lulinha. She confirmed that she introduced him to businessman Antônio Carlos Camilo Antunes, nicknamed the “Careca do INSS,” but said the meeting happened in a social context and had no business purpose.
What Police Are Probing
Operation Sem Desconto investigates suspected irregular deductions from pensions and retirement benefits paid by the INSS, Brazil’s federal pension agency. The Federal Police and the Comptroller General’s Office (CGU), the federal audit and anti-corruption body, launched a new phase of the operation on May 27, according to G1.
CNN Brasil and Gazeta do Povo report that investigators are examining payments from a company linked to Antunes to RL Consultoria, Luchsinger’s firm. Gazeta do Povo, citing police material, described five transfers of R$300,000 each, totaling R$1.5 million, or roughly USD 270,000 at recent exchange rates. CNN described the total as nearly R$1.5 million.
Luchsinger says the money paid for consulting work on regulation of Brazil’s medical cannabis and cannabidiol market. She told Folha that her contract was worth R$300,000 per month over five months and that she terminated it after news reports linked Antunes to the INSS case.
The Link to Lulinha
The political sensitivity comes from Luchsinger’s close relationship with Lulinha and his wife, Renata. Folha reported that the families traveled together, including a five-day trip to Finland in January 2025 that later drew public scrutiny. Luchsinger said she did not pay for Lulinha’s expenses and that bank and tax records found no irregular transfers between them.
CNN reported that Luchsinger told police she did not join a separate trip to Portugal involving Lulinha and Antunes. According to her defense, that trip was for business prospecting related to medical cannabis and fell outside her consulting contract. She also denied passing money to Lulinha “directly or indirectly,” a point also stated in the description of SBT News’s report on her testimony.
Gazeta do Povo reported that police material included a reference by Antunes to a payment for “the son of the guy,” a phrase opposition figures have treated as potentially referring to Lulinha. CNN reported that police did not ask Luchsinger who the phrase referred to during her deposition. Gazeta also noted that Lulinha was not formally under investigation in the decision it cited.
Supreme Court Oversight
The case is under the supervision of Justice André Mendonça of Brazil’s Supreme Federal Court (STF), which handles matters involving authorities with special legal jurisdiction. G1 reported that Mendonça asked for a detailed status report on people targeted by Federal Police operations after the inquiry was transferred from the police division that handles pension crimes to a unit that deals with cases before higher courts.
According to G1, Mendonça has told investigators not to persecute anyone but also not to spare anyone. Luchsinger’s lawyers say the case should be shelved for lack of evidence of a crime. Police reports cited by the outlets, however, describe suspicions that her company may have served as a political or financial operator in the broader scheme, an allegation she rejects.