Special report | Corruption and crime
Sliding back
Revelations of graft have fuelled anti-establishmentism
IN 1969 A Bahian construction firm called Odebrecht began work on a brutalist building in Rio de Janeiro, which was to be the headquarters of Petrobras. It was an exciting moment: Petrobras had found oil off the coast and Odebrecht would become Brazil’s biggest contractor. But 45 years later came Lava Jato, when scores of businessmen were jailed, including Odebrecht’s boss.
This article appeared in the Special report section of the print edition under the headline “Sliding back”