Brazil’s Prosecutor General’s Office has asked the Superior Court of Justice (STJ) to send an investigation involving former Bahia governor Rui Costa back to Brazil’s Supreme Federal Court (STF). The case concerns alleged irregularities in a R$48 million contract, roughly USD 9 million at recent rates, for 300 ventilators that were never delivered during the Covid-19 pandemic.
The reporting is based on a single source, Gazeta do Povo, which cited information first revealed by O Estado de S. Paulo. Costa, a member of the Workers’ Party (PT), the center-left party led by President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, was governor of Bahia and chaired the Northeast Consortium when the contract was signed in 2020.
What Prosecutors Argue
In a filing sent to Justice Og Fernandes, the STJ judge overseeing the case, prosecutors said the inquiry involves not only possible diversion of public money but also indications of money laundering and concealment of assets. According to the Prosecutor General’s Office, those alleged acts may have continued while Costa served as Lula’s chief of staff, a federal cabinet position known in Brazil as minister of the Civil House.
That argument matters because Brazil’s system of privileged jurisdiction, known as foro por prerrogativa de função, can send cases involving certain officeholders to higher courts. Prosecutors said the alleged concealment of assets should be treated as a continuing offense, meaning it could renew itself as long as the money remains hidden from authorities.
Gazeta do Povo quoted the filing as saying the alleged concealment began in the context of the contract signed by Costa as governor and continued while he held federal office. Prosecutors also said investigative steps are still under way to locate the allegedly diverted funds.
A Case Moving Between Courts
The ventilator inquiry began in 2020 at the Bahia Civil Police. Since then, it has moved repeatedly among different courts and jurisdictions, a procedural path prosecutors now say has slowed the investigation.
According to Gazeta do Povo, the case has passed from state court to the STJ, then to the STF, then to federal court in Bahia, back to the STJ, again to the STF, and then back to the STJ. In the new filing, prosecutors argued that assigning the case to the Supreme Court would give the investigation more stability and avoid further interruptions caused by transfers, redistribution and delays.
The latest request comes after the Prosecutor General’s Office itself had asked in August 2025 for the case to be sent to the STJ. That request was granted by STF Justice Flávio Dino under the court’s newer interpretation of privileged jurisdiction rules.
Political Context
Costa is a senior figure in Lula’s political camp. He governed Bahia, one of the Workers’ Party’s strongest states, and later became chief of staff in Lula’s administration, a position that coordinates the federal government’s political and administrative agenda.
Gazeta do Povo reported that Costa left the chief of staff post in March 2026 to run for a Senate seat in Brazil’s 2026 elections. The source article does not include a response from Costa or his defense to the latest request by prosecutors.
The core facts under investigation remain the 2020 purchase, the R$48 million paid for ventilators, and the failure of those 300 devices to be delivered. Prosecutors now want the Supreme Court to decide whether the alleged concealment of assets keeps the case within its jurisdiction.