A Brazilian lawmaker stepped down from his position representing President Jair Bolsonaro’s government in the senate after reports that police searching his house found cash in his underwear as part of an investigation into stolen COVID-19 funds.
Federal police targeted Roraima state’s Sen. Chico Rodrigues as part of a probe by the comptroller general’s office into the alleged misappropriation of 20 million reais ($3.5 million), Brazil’s Communications Ministry said in a statement Thursday.
Rodrigues resigned as deputy leader of Bolsonaro’s government in the Senate, according to the nation’s official gazette.
Major local newspapers including Folha de S. Paulo and Estado de S. Paulo reported police found 100,000 reais ($17,836) in Rodrigues’ house Wednesday, with 30,000 reais ($5,346) of that in the underwear he was wearing at the time.
The papers cited sources who spoke on condition of anonymity, which The Associated Press was unable to independently verify. The story was first reported by Crusoe, an online news website.
