Brazil supreme court crisis deepens over 'Caso Master' leaks
Chief Justice Edson Fachin will receive Federal Police reports detailing mentions of several supreme court justices, threatening to fuel internal friction.
The institutional friction within Brazil’s highest judicial body is poised to deepen as Supreme Court (STF) President Edson Fachin prepares to receive highly sensitive police reports. On October 13, 2026, Fachin is scheduled to meet with Federal Police (PF) Director-General Andrei Rodrigues ebc.com.br. During this meeting, the police will formally deliver reports detailing mentions of at least six current supreme court justices or their family members found on the phone of jailed ex-banker Daniel Vorcaro globo.com.
The escalating controversy, known locally as the "Caso Master," centers on the activities of Vorcaro, the former controller of Banco Master cnnbrasil.com.br. Tensions within the court spiked last month when Justice André Mendonça, the case's original rapporteur, lifted the confidentiality of parts of the investigation ebc.com.br. The newly public records revealed that Vorcaro had sent messages to a phone number linked to Justice Alexandre de Moraes shortly before the banker's arrest ebc.com.br. Since then, other leaked files have shown references to Justices Nunes Marques, Dias Toffoli, Luiz Fux, and Mendonça himself, involving various associates and relatives ebc.com.br, globo.com. All named justices and their relatives have strongly denied any wrongdoing globo.com.
The fallout from these disclosures has triggered a rare public rift among the members of Brazil's supreme court. To manage the crisis, Chief Justice Fachin temporarily transferred the oversight of the "Caso Master" files to his own office cnnbrasil.com.br, estadao.com.br. He has insisted that the investigation proceed "without exception of any person" to protect the court's institutional integrity poder360.com.br. However, the move has temporarily stalled the legal proceedings, leaving Vorcaro’s defense team complaining that their client is stuck in a "jurisdictional limbo" while awaiting a ruling on his preventive detention cnnbrasil.com.br.
To defuse internal animosities and avoid further public clashes, STF leadership is considering a procedural bypass globo.com. Allies of both Moraes and Mendonça are advocating for Fachin to forward all police findings directly to the Prosecutor-General’s Office (PGR) for a preliminary evaluation globo.com. By handing the initial assessment to an external prosecutor, the court hopes to lower the temperature in Brasília, though the political and institutional damage from the leaks remains a pressing concern.