Ex-Unicamp Employee Acquitted of Money Laundering, Convicted of $4.2M Embezzlement
The São Paulo Court of Justice (TJSP) has acquitted Ligiane Marinho de Ávila, a former employee of Unicamp's development foundation (Funcamp), of money laundering charges. However, her conviction for embezzling funds intended for scientific research financed by the São Paulo State Research Support Foundation (Fapesp) remains. The court reduced her sentence from 10 years and 6 months to 5 years and 6 months, but she cannot appeal while free, as she is currently a fugitive in Europe. The initial sentence must be served in a closed regime.
The court also upheld the obligation for Ávila to return R$ 4,265,443.97 to Fapesp, with monetary correction. The TJSP rejected a Public Ministry appeal that sought to increase her sentence by treating each embezzlement instance as a separate crime. Instead, the court maintained the understanding of a continuous crime, as Ávila used the same method to commit fraud over the years. The defense plans to pursue further appeals for sentence and regime reduction, arguing that a prisão warrant is unnecessary given the ongoing appeals and the possibility of a milder regime. Ávila is reportedly working abroad, and her return date is unknown.
The acquittal from money laundering stemmed from the court's view that her actions, such as creating a micro-enterprise and issuing false invoices, were part of the primary embezzlement crime (peculato) rather than an independent attempt to conceal the origin of illegally obtained money. The scheme involved Ávila, who worked in a department assisting researchers, using bank cards and passwords for Fapesp-funded projects to transfer money to her own accounts, send funds to her company, issue fake invoices for unrendered services, and falsify receipts. This impacted dozens of researchers, some of whom faced project blocks and investigations. The embezzled funds allegedly financed a lavish lifestyle, including property purchases and international travel, before Ávila fled to the UK after her dismissal. Her fugitive status was cited by the TJSP as a reason for maintaining the closed regime sentence.
This judicial decision highlights a critical distinction between direct financial misconduct and subsequent attempts to conceal it. While the court recognized the embezzlement of R$ 4.2 million in research funds, it found insufficient evidence for a separate money laundering charge, viewing the suspect's actions as integrated into the primary offense. This outcome may prompt a review of how financial crimes are prosecuted, particularly concerning the threshold for distinct money laundering charges when concealment activities are closely tied to the initial illicit gain. The fugitive status of the former employee and the ongoing international efforts for extradition underscore the complexities of cross-border financial crime enforcement and the challenges in ensuring accountability. Future legal frameworks might need to address more effectively the systemic vulnerabilities that allow such diversions of public research funds and the mechanisms for swift recovery and prosecution, regardless of an offender's location.
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