Brazil's Federal Police launched the third phase of Operation Transparency on Monday (Sept. 14), an investigation into suspected irregularities in the handling of congressional earmarks, the budget funds that legislators direct to works, hospitals and social projects in their states and municipalities. Officers are serving four search and seizure warrants in the Federal District and in São Paulo state. The orders came from Supreme Court Justice Flávio Dino, according to G1.

The operation investigates possible exploitation of prestige, influence peddling, passive corruption and money laundering, the force said. It is an offshoot of an inquiry opened in December 2025 into the allocation of the earmarks.

In a statement, the Federal Police said the investigation indicates that "members of the group negotiated with third parties the payment of significant amounts, conditioned on the outcome of cases in progress, under the pretext of influencing judicial decisions." The statement added that "there are no elements indicating the participation of members of the Judiciary in the facts under investigation." The force reported no arrests in this phase and did not name the targets.

One target was identified by the press: federal Deputy Cezinha Madureira, according to the column of Mônica Bergamo in the newspaper Folha de S.Paulo. The column describes the lawmaker as a friend and ally of Supreme Court Justice André Mendonça. The G1 report, still being updated, had named no targets by Monday morning.

Congressional earmarks, known in Brazil as emendas parlamentares, let members of Congress reserve federal budget money for projects back home. The allocation of those funds is what the inquiry has examined since December 2025.

Next come the review of the material seized in the searches and, at the close of the inquiry, a final report to the Supreme Court, where Dino issued the warrants. If prosecutors at the Attorney General's Office find sufficient evidence against a sitting lawmaker, they can file charges before the Supreme Court itself, which tries members of Congress under Brazil's Constitution.