Socialist President of Brazil Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva on Thursday publicly denied knowing a businesswoman embroiled in his son’s ongoing corruption probes despite extensive photographic evidence suggesting otherwise.
Several of the candidates running against Lula in the October presidential election published old photos showing Lula alongside the businesswoman, debunking the president’s claims.
President Lula’s oldest son, Fábio Luís Lula da Silva, is currently being targeted by three different probes on allegations of corruption and influence peddling at Brazilian federal government institutions, including Brazil’s National Social Security Institute (INSS). The younger Lula is commonly referred to by the nickname Lulinha (“Lil’ Lula”).
Some of the broader INSS corruption allegations against the president’s son involve businesswoman and lobbyist Roberta Luchsinger. An investigation conducted by Brazil’s Federal Police (PF) reportedly found chat messages in Luchsinger’s phone suggesting that she and Lulinha maintained a “permanent acting and coordinated action nucleus” to secure deals with public institutions.
Additionally, some of the messages obtained by the PF in the investigation reportedly state that Luchsinger told another Brazilian businessman that President Lula had “offered” her a government position. According to the alleged contents of the messages, she declined the offer to focus on her “partnership” with Lulinha. Per O Globo, some of the messages also suggest that Luchsinger received large sums of cash to cover flight ticket expenses for Lula’s son. Both Lulinha and Luchsinger have reportedly denied any wrongdoing.
According to CNN Brasil, the messages also suggest a link between Luchsinger and Marco Aurélio “Marcola” Santana Ribeiro, President Lula’s former chief of staff. Santana Ribeiro, who is also a target of the broader corruption probes, has been described as one of Lula’s closest advisers.
On Thursday, President Lula held an interview with TV Globo as part of the ongoing 2026 presidential campaign in which he is seeking reelection for a fourth term. Asked for comment on the allegations that he “offered” a government position to Luchsinger and asked if he ever met her in the Brazilian presidential palace, the incumbent president said that he “does not know” the businesswoman nor had he ever seen her in the past.
“The only thing missing was for her to say that I offered her the Ministry of Defense; the idea that the navy and air force operating here are under her command is utter nonsense,” Lula prefaced.
“I don’t know this woman. I’ve never seen her in my life. I’ve never spoken to her. She’s never been anywhere near me,” he asserted.
Hellbound and Down 