[Trending News] There was no corruption or economic participation in business in the sale of the Atlantis ship. But Mário Ferreira has not yet got rid of the investigation

The shipyards saw in their arms with a debt and the ship in their possession. There were several attempts to sell the vessel. He was seen by Hugo Chávez, then president of Venezuela, who had good relations with the Portuguese government, led by José Sócrates. “Tremendous Ferry, Compadre, who comes here,” even said Chavez who had put new value on the ship-42.5 million euros, then reported in the newspapers (although in the investigation one of the respondents spoke of 35 million) . The interest lasted about a year. Portugal called the troika to financial aid and the government changed. Venezuela was just one of the interested investors. The Canadian British Columbia Ferries joined and the state of French Polynesia. None of the three presented, according to information contained in the process, a concrete proposal. And the further the time the time advanced, the more it devalued the vessel.

Socrates lost the elections to Pedro Passos Coelho. And with the new executive, he advanced to the privatization of the shipyards who owned Atlantis. Not only was the concession of the Viana do Castelo shipyards, but also promoted, in 2014, the public tender for the sale of ferry that no longer interests the Azores. Not long ago. The ship was attached to Alfeite to devalue (and with costs for a company, the ENVC, which were then already in a debilitated financial situation) and by the end of 2014 would no longer be classified as a ship, which would lead to its sale as a scrap.

Thus, in the competition it was determined that the sale would be made at the best price, but without definition of a minimum amount and without commitment to competitors (such as the delivery of bank guarantees or costs by lifting the Competition Parts). The highest price was offered by Greek shipowner Thesarco Shipping that appeared with 12.8 million. The second largest offer was that of Mário Ferreira, with 8.75 million, and the third was that of Dutch MD Roelof Beheer and Chavalier Floations, who put 4 million on the table. The public tender was managed by a designated jury and assisted by Besi (the BES Investment Bank, which would fall in 2014).

Thesarco was declared a winner of the contest for the sale of Atlantis. But after the proposal, it never appeared. Nor in the promise contract of purchase and sale. And without this signature it fell to the land for sale to the Greek company. Which led to advanced to the second proposal. And it was here that it was allowed that Mário Ferreira, who maintained the offer, was with the boat.

This appearance and disappearance of the Greek shipowner was one of the tips that the investigation wanted to follow, in the event of a facade offer. Filomena Bacelar, an inspector of the finance she presided over to the jury, indicated to the Judicial Police, under the inquiry in the process, that there was no obligation to get the ship award to the second classified, in the withdrawal of the first. And he also assumed that he was surprised by the Greek company.

Nelson Correia da Silva, also heard in the inquiry, who accompanied the construction and sale of Atlantis, as advice to the ENVC administration, indicated that he did not know the Greek company or any of his responsible, “a fact that was surprised by any experience in the area of ​​shipbuilding and never before crossed with such names. Strange even more strange when I learned that it was not possible to contact the winning company of the contest ”, reads in the order of filing.

The same strangeness was revealed by other respondents. Filomena Bacelar, from the jury, revealed that at the end of the competition process had difficulty contacting the Greek society, but “there is no elements in her possession that allows her to question the suitability of the proposal presented by the Assarco”, he indicates in the survey Although it was strange that the winner never visited the ship to the competition, but when contacted to supply a documentation failure before the final adjudication made it “quickly.” “This may indict that the disinterest of the Thesarco society occurred at a later time, IE, few before the award.”

They were interlocutors of the Greek shipowner in the contest two people – Evangelos Saravanos and Mabel Santos. The investigation could never hear the first (but deceased). Already Mabel Santos, who was doing business intermediation, was heard – after some attempts – to explain that he had been contacted by one of his customers, George Thasaparas (who has also died) to tell him of a Greek business partner owner of a Ship fleet. And here he arrived in Evangelos Saravanos whose posture, said the question, “denoted a certain arrogance and rudeness in the way he approached the matters.” He indicated that he had not received anything for his help and that he tried all his contacts from the Greek shipowner – to no avail – when the jury and the ENVC asked him to try these approaches to sign the contract. “He tried all the contacts he had at his disposal (email, skype, landline and mobile phone), but all results were fruitless. Found this very strange and deduced that possibly this individual was a burlon and that everything was not passed from a fraud“.

About Mario Ferreira, the question said, I didn't personally know, just from the television program. The boss of Douro Azul was one of the “sharks” of the shark lake, transmitted by SIC.

Mário Ferreira was himself asked if he had any relationship with Evangelos Saravanos or the company by the Porto Court. “Zero. I had no idea who it was. I don't even do it. (…) I don't even care, ”he said in the session where a reputed and respected entrepreneur was considered.