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A justice on Brazil's Supreme Federal Court (STF) ordered the seizure of the passport of publicist Thiago Miranda, an associate of Banco Master owner Daniel Vorcaro, after federal police said he posed a flight risk, according to single-source reporting from O Globo.
Justice André Mendonça issued the order on Saturday, July 11, after the Federal Police (PF), Brazil's national investigative police force, told the court that Miranda had bought a ticket to travel to the United States on Monday. The Office of the Prosecutor General had backed the police request for related searches earlier in the week.
What Police Allege
Miranda was already targeted on Thursday by a search-and-seizure warrant authorized by Mendonça. Investigators say he acted with Vorcaro to intimidate O Globo columnist Malu Gaspar and other people the alleged group viewed as obstacles.
According to the PF account cited by O Globo, investigators found that the targets used a platform selling unauthorized access to personal data, including financial information, to gather material on Gaspar. Police said the aim was to find potentially damaging information.
The inquiry says the same method was used against other people, including Milton Maluhy, chief executive of Itaú, one of Banco Master's competitors. O Globo reported that police framed the conduct as an attempt to protect the leadership of an alleged criminal organization, manipulate public opinion and coerce or intimidate journalists, competitors and people linked to Brazil's Central Bank.
Data and Devices
The police request cited by O Globo referred to possible violations of Article 154-A of Brazil's Penal Code, which covers unauthorized access to computer devices. Investigators also alleged that Miranda used funds derived from Banco Master's alleged financial frauds to support what they described as a media disinformation campaign.
The warrant authorized the seizure of cellphones, electronic equipment and documents. It also allowed investigators to extract conversations from the devices, including cloud-stored messages.
O Globo said conversations obtained by federal police showed that Miranda and Vorcaro became dissatisfied after news reports about investigations into Banco Master, including alleged fraudulent transactions and price manipulation. After complaints from the banker, Miranda allegedly said he would scrutinize the journalist's life and passed on information about her relatives, bank accounts and address.
Bolsonaro Film Link
Miranda has also appeared in a separate political-financing thread tied to a film project about former president Jair Bolsonaro, the right-wing leader who governed Brazil from 2019 to 2022. O Globo said Miranda confirmed that he intermediated talks that led Vorcaro to finance the project, though the banker's role was not expected to appear publicly.
The report said the film project was presented to Miranda by federal deputy Mario Frias, a member of Bolsonaro's Liberal Party (PL), after Frias sought help with financing. O Globo also cited earlier reporting that Senator Flávio Bolsonaro, the former president's son and a PL politician from Rio de Janeiro, sent an audio message in September 2025 asking Vorcaro for money to fund a biographical film about his father.
O Globo reported that Vorcaro's financing for the film reached R$62 million, with further payments suspended after Banco Master's financial crisis. The article did not report a public response from Miranda, Vorcaro or Banco Master to the latest passport-seizure order.