MS Health Services Used as 'Barter' in R$27 Million Book Purchase Fraud Scheme
An investigation by the Public Prosecutor's Office of Mato Grosso do Sul (MPMS) has uncovered a criminal organization suspected of manipulating the regulation of healthcare services within the Unified Health System (SUS) in Mato Grosso do Sul for approximately five years. The scheme allegedly used access to hospital beds, medical exams, and surgeries as leverage to pressure municipal mayors into purchasing books from Editora Avante. The MPMS described this practice as "repugnant," as it purportedly conditioned the population's access to essential health services on the signing of fraudulent book purchase contracts, totaling over R$27 million. This operation, named "Gutenberg," was launched on Tuesday, November 7th, by the Special Action Group to Combat Organized Crime (Gaeco).
During the operation, Gaeco executed 16 arrest warrants and 43 search and seizure warrants, leading to the apprehension of 14 individuals across Campo Grande, Dourados, and a city in Goiás, with two suspects still at large. Over R$70,000 in cash and pre-filled checks were seized. The investigation points to the Paroschi Jafar family as the alleged leaders of the organization, with businesswoman and dental surgeon Rossana Paroschi Jafar at its head, alongside her children Olívia, Felipe, and Giovanni, and former daughter-in-law Rhayane Souza Fanaia. The family reportedly took control of the scheme after the death of Rossana's husband, Mirched Jafar Júnior, in 2021. The organization is accused of operating through a shell company and exerting influence over public officials to divert municipal funds, while formally distancing the Jafar family from Editora Avante by registering it under third parties' names.
In 2022, the scheme allegedly gained a new dimension with the involvement of Ed Carlo Britto Burgatt, then coordinator of Regulation at the Mato Grosso do Sul State Health Secretariat (SES-MS). Burgatt is accused of using his position to benefit municipalities that contracted with the publisher and pressure those who resisted. He was dismissed the day after the operation began. Intercepted messages suggest Burgatt threatened to restrict access to health services, including critical "zero-bed" requests for emergencies, for municipalities that did not comply with book purchase agreements. The MPMS views this as transforming the right to public healthcare into a coercive tool for corruption in public bidding processes for books, with Burgatt and lawyer Gabriel Taquino de Paula allegedly manipulating the service regulation queue for the group's gain.
This investigation highlights a systemic vulnerability where essential public health services, intended for citizen welfare, were allegedly weaponized for illicit financial gain. The alleged scheme demonstrates how regulatory access, a critical component of public service delivery, can be corrupted when oversight mechanisms are insufficient or compromised. The involvement of public officials in leveraging healthcare access for private contracts points to a breakdown in governance and ethical conduct. Future public administration reforms should focus on strengthening transparency in procurement processes and establishing robust, independent oversight of regulatory bodies to prevent the instrumentalization of public health resources for personal or organizational enrichment. The case also underscores the importance of auditing financial flows and corporate structures, particularly when shell companies and family-linked entities are involved in public contracts.
AI-generated to prompt reflection — not editorial opinion, not advice, not a statement of fact. How this works.