Rio Police Raid Targets Councilor in Probe of Alleged Creche Fund Diversion

Overview

• The Civil Police’s Fraud Division executed 29 search-and-seizure warrants against 15 companies and 14 individuals under orders from the 1st Court Specialized in Criminal Organizations.
• Targets include councilor Gigi Castilho along with her husband Luciano Castilho and daughter Andreza dos Santos Adão, with searches at the family home in Sepetiba and at the Deus é Fiel and Escola Machado creches.
• Police allege a network opened front companies in the names of proxies, issued inflated or fake invoices, and simulated deliveries to justify city payments.
• Investigators say one convened creche received about R$9 million in six months and recorded 816 cash withdrawals totaling roughly R$1.5 million, movements deemed incompatible with a school’s profile.
• Earlier RJ2 reporting found about R$1.7 million paid in 2022–2023 to firms tied to the councilor’s circle, several later closed, and officers are seizing records and devices to map beneficiaries and possible public servants involved.