Court Refuses to Review Driver's Request After Accidental $131 Million Deposit

A Brazilian court has declined to consider a clarification request filed by the legal team of Antônio Pereira do Nascimento, a truck driver who briefly became a multimillionaire after a bank mistakenly deposited R$ 131.8 million into his account. The request, known as "embargos de declaração," was submitted after witnesses were dismissed in Nascimento's ongoing lawsuit. Nascimento is seeking a reward and compensation related to the incident. The 6th Civil Court of Palmas stated that the "embargos de declaração" were not accepted because the necessary legal requirements were not met. These legal filings are typically used to seek clarification or correction of judicial decisions that are unclear, contradictory, or incomplete. According to civil law expert Mateus Gomes, the court's decision to not review the filing, rather than reject or deny it, has caused some perplexity within the legal community. The defense had sought to clarify points after the court decided in March 2026 not to hear testimony from witnesses requested by both Nascimento and the bank. Nascimento's lawsuit demands a 10% reward, equivalent to R$ 13.1 million, plus R$ 150,000 in damages for emotional distress and harassment. The defense argued that witnesses were crucial to proving Nascimento's emotional state and the circumstances that affected him. The court, however, deemed that documentary evidence would suffice to prove these aspects, focusing the central issue on the erroneous transfer and its restitution. Nascimento, a father of 14 grandchildren, immediately sought to return the money upon realizing the error and even joked about the situation, stating he had never seen such a sum and did not play the lottery. The case gained significant public attention, appearing on a national television program. The lawsuit was filed in July 2024, over a year after the erroneous deposit. Nascimento's defense also cited alleged psychological pressure from the bank manager and media harassment as contributing factors to his emotional distress.