Pointed out by investigations and by his colleagues as omission in the police operation on January 8, in Brasília, Colonel Paulo José Ferreira Souza Bezerra was heard this Thursday (21), at the CPI on Anti-Democratic Acts of the Legislative Chamber of the Federal District (CLDF ). At the time, he refuted the accusations made by other witnesses and said that Colonel Casimiro lied at the CPI.
“You (Paulo José) are arriving here today as the person largely responsible for everything that happened. Everyone who came by said it was your fault. You will have a great opportunity to say who is to blame”, stated at the beginning of the meeting the president of the CPI, deputy Chico Vigilante (PT), who questioned whether Paulo José gave the order to open the Esplanada, as he said in his statement. Colonel Casimiro. Paulo José has been in prison since August 18th.
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“I never gave that order to Colonel Casimiro. The only person who has the authority to give this order is the President of the Republic or the governor of the Federal District and he knows this. He lied here at this CPI and I make myself available for confrontation”, assured Paulo José, who was responsible for the Operations Department (DOP), on January 8th.
The deponent also held Colonel Casimiro responsible for saying that it was not necessary to strengthen the force on the Esplanada. “I ask at 12:56 pm on Sunday (January 8): ‘Casimiro, are there enough staff there?’ He says: ‘For now, these are enough’”, narrated Paulo José, in possession of a piece of paper with cell phone messages, which according to him is with the Federal Police for investigation. “The competence was his (Casemiro)”, argued Paulo José when talking about the need to send more police officers to the Esplanada.
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According to Paulo José, at the end of 2022 he was on vacation and then went on leave (not working) and therefore did not participate in the operation for President Lula’s inauguration, on January 1st. He also said that his firearm license was suspended due to psychiatric treatment.
Chico Vigilante said that “it appears” that the other officers are trying to shift responsibility to Colonel Paulo José, who, as he is undergoing psychiatric treatment, would not be held responsible. The deponent did not confirm this hypothesis.
After months of vacation and absence, Colonel Paulo José was called to take over as deputy director of the DOP, days before the events. The DOP was headed by Colonel Jorge Eduardo Naime, who was off duty on January 8th. Paulo José was arrested on August 18, along with other PMDF high command officers, such as former commanders Klepter Rosa and Fábio Augusto Vieira and colonels Casimiro and Naime.
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Exchanged messages
Deputy Fábio Félix (PSOL) presented several messages exchanged by Colonel Paulo José in the days leading up to January 8th, in which he was already part of the DOP. One of the most problematic messages was a text exchange with Colonel Casimiro. On January 7th, Paulo José forwards a scammer message he received and Casimiro says ‘it’s going to work’ and he replies ‘Lol. He is going yes’.
“What about these exchanges of messages?” asks Felix.
“If you look at the whole context, all the messages I send to Colonel Casimiro. It is a message of concern, a message of verification of the need to add more staff or not. Now, if he says ‘it’s going to work’ I understand that”, said Paulo José. “And this laughter gives a slightly playful connotation to the scenario”, added Félix. “From my point of view, this was an operation set up to work. An omissive operation”, assessed the deputy.
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Deputy Gabriel Magno (PT) presented another exchange of messages between Paulo José and Casimiro, which confirms the deponent’s version of having received information that it was not necessary to increase the number of personnel around 1 pm on January 8th, when the putschists were already descending towards the Esplanada.
“This proves that Colonel Casimiro, who came here, lied”, considered Magno, adding: “It is a crisis we are experiencing, unprecedented in the history of the DF. Given the facts, there is only one conclusion: the Military Police command is not trustworthy.”
Source: BdF Distrito Federal
Editing: Flávia Quirino
