Rio Prosecutors Ask Court to Declare Refit Bankrupt as State Seeks Federal OK to Seize Site

Overview

• The Rio de Janeiro public prosecutor's office filed a court brief asking judges to convert Refit's nearly ten-year judicial recovery into bankruptcy, arguing the process failed to restructure the company and allowed debts to balloon.
• Authorities say Refit now faces multibillion-reais claims, with state tax liabilities in the billions and much larger sums recorded in federal debt registries, figures prosecutors link to systematic tax evasion and alleged concealment of assets.
• Federal police have sought preventive detention of controller Ricardo Magro and consider him a fugitive, while past operations and seizures led investigators to probe suspected ties between Refit and organized criminal networks.
• The Rio government, led by interim governor Ricardo Couto, is preparing to pursue expropriation of the Manguinhos site but says a presidential decree is required under Supreme Court precedent before the federal-owned land can be taken.
• Regulatory and enforcement actions continue, including ANP interdictions, Inea license reviews and large fuel seizures by Receita Federal, and prosecutors say those steps plus new rules on persistent tax debtors could speed judicial and administrative measures.