Brazil prosecutors look at Petrobras role in stadium construction

Sao Paulo, Jan 15 (IANS/EFE) Prosecutors in Brazil will investigate possible misuse of funds from state-run oil giant Petrobras during the construction of Sao Paulo's Arena Corinthians stadium, one of the venues for the 2014 FIFA World Cup.

Five parallel probes are to be launched within the next 30 days, prosecutor Valter Foleto Santin told business daily Valor Economico Wednesday.

"My investigation will focus on the pipeline work around the Arena Corinthians stadium but there will be other inquiries," Santin said, adding that the steps are "preliminary" and originated in documents seized from jailed businessman Alberto Yousseff, accused of running a corruption ring.

The prosecutor was referring to the relocation of Petrobras' pipelines at the stadium, a project carried out by the oil company's Transpetro subsidiary and the private firm Sacs Construcao e Montagem.

Although the stadium is privately owned, the project received a 400 million reais ($151.6 million) loan from the state-run National Bank for Economic and Social Development.

Petrobras, which accounts for 13 percent of Brazil's gross domestic product, is already at the centre of a 10-billion-reais ($3.85-billion) corruption scandal involving company executives and powerful politicians.

--IANS/EFE

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