The Administrative Council for Economic Defense (CADE), in cooperation with the Public Prosecutor’s Office of the State of Minas Gerais (MPMG), has launched Operation Apate to investigate an alleged cartel suspected of influencing public transport tenders in multiple municipalities across the state of Minas Gerais. The operation also targets suspected fraud in the contracting of urban public transportation services in the city of Juiz de Fora.
The search and seizure operation, carried out on Wednesday, May 21, 2025, is the result of a joint investigation led by the 22nd Prosecutor’s Office for Public Assets in Juiz de Fora and CADE’s Superintendence-General (SG/CADE). The inquiry was prompted by findings from a report by the State Court of Auditors’ Public Prosecutor’s Office (MPC-MG), which raised suspicions of coordinated practices in the municipalities of Betim, Belo Horizonte, Divinópolis, Governador Valadares, Contagem, Poços de Caldas, and Juiz de Fora.
Judicial warrants were executed in the cities of Juiz de Fora, Belo Horizonte, Viçosa, Ervália, and Paracatu in Minas Gerais, as well as in Três Rios in the neighboring state of Rio de Janeiro. The operation involved a significant multi-agency effort, including approximately 35 CADE professionals, 15 agents from MPMG’s Special Action Group for Combating Organized Crime (GAECO), four MPMG staff members, 20 civil police officers, nine public prosecutors, 25 military police officers from Minas Gerais, and eight officials from GAECO of the Rio de Janeiro State Public Prosecutor’s Office (MPRJ).
Following the procedural phase of the investigation, CADE’s Superintendence-General will issue a technical opinion and submit the case to CADE’s Tribunal for judgment. The Tribunal may decide to dismiss the case or issue a conviction if evidence confirms an infringement of economic order. Companies found guilty may face fines ranging from 0.1% to 20% of their gross turnover in the relevant market in the fiscal year preceding the opening of the administrative proceedings. Individuals may be fined between BRL 50,000 (USD 9,700) and BRL 2 billion (USD388 million).
Any evidence of criminal offenses uncovered during the operation will be submitted by the Public Prosecutor’s Office to the Judiciary of the State of Minas Gerais for further legal action, in accordance with applicable law.
The investigation is currently under judicial secrecy.
