Aveiro Health Unit's Chair Is Dismissed With Immediate Effect After Police Detain Him in a Corruption and Influence-Peddling Inquiry

The health minister, Ana Paula Martins, dismissed the chair of the Aveiro local health unit with immediate effect on Tuesday, a day after the Polícia Judiciária (PJ, the criminal investigation police) detained him in an operation it calls "Batas & Betão" ("Coats and Concrete"). According to the PJ, three men are suspected of active and passive corruption, economic participation in business, abuse of power and influence peddling. All three are presumed innocent and have not been charged.

The PJ communiqué names no one. RTP, Observador, Público and ECO all identify one of the detained men as Ricardo Correia de Matos, chair of the board of the Unidade Local de Saúde (ULS) da Região de Aveiro; Público and ECO describe the other two as building contractors.

What the police say

In its communiqué, the PJ's Centre directorate says it acted on arrest warrants from the Coimbra regional prosecution department (DIAP Regional de Coimbra). The investigation concerns a suspected agreement that would have given the men an undue financial advantage, alleged favouritism in contracting (adjudications arranged in advance, invitations steered to chosen firms, competition simulated) and the suspected use of influence in a selection process for a hospital management post.

Officers carried out five searches of homes, eight of other premises, one of a lawyer's office and two of health facilities, in the Lisbon area, Vila Nova de Gaia, Aveiro and Águeda. A property was seized, along with 15,000 euros in cash, 15,000 US dollars in cryptocurrency and documents. Eighty PJ staff took part. The detained men are Portuguese nationals aged 44, 47 and 51 with no criminal record, the PJ says.

RTP reports that investigators suspect he steered building contracts at the Ordem dos Enfermeiros (the nurses' professional order) and the Portuguese Red Cross, where he held senior posts, to the two contractors, who in return allegedly built a house for him at Praia da Barra, in Ílhavo. According to ECO, citing Lusa, the PJ's Centre director, Avelino Lima, said there were "strong indications" of interference in the selection process run by CReSAP, the public-sector recruitment commission, so that it would lead to the appointment, and that the inquiry has been running for about 11 months.

The minister's decision

In a statement reported by ECO, the minister said she could not "in coherence" do otherwise than dismiss him with immediate effect, and the ministry said it will start choosing a new management team for the unit. On the same day she announced the removal of the Algarve health unit's chair over deaths at Portimão hospital's emergency department, an unrelated case.

What it means for patients

A ULS is the public body that runs both hospital care and primary care (health centres and family health units) for an area under a single board. The Aveiro unit runs three hospitals, in Águeda, Aveiro and Estarreja, plus the area's health centres, including the Gafanha da Nazaré family health units. None of the statements issued on Tuesday announced any change to appointments, emergency care or other services.

What happens next

The PJ says the three men will be brought before a judge at the Tribunal Judicial de Coimbra for their first judicial questioning (primeiro interrogatório judicial). The judge then decides which coercive measures (medidas de coação), if any, apply to each of them while the investigation continues; ECO reported they were due in court on Tuesday. Detention and questioning are not a charge: prosecutors must still decide whether to bring an indictment.