By a vote of two to one, the magistrates of the supreme court accepted the defense's appeal to suspend the criminal process that had been opened against Cariús.
With this interpretation, the members of the Second Chamber of the Supreme Federal Court (STF) granted a 'habeas corpus' to the defender Igor Cariús, accused of having received money from bettors to be cautioned when playing a match in the 2022 Brazilian Championship with the Cuiabá club.
The decision, which nullifies the criminal action against Cariús, sets a relevant precedent regarding the limits of criminal liability in cases related to sports betting, although its effects are limited to the specific case.
Cariús was criminally denounced based on article 198 of the General Law of Sport, which penalizes requesting or accepting advantages to alter sports results.
The Supreme Court of Brazil ruled on Tuesday that a football player cannot be criminally prosecuted for match-fixing solely for forcing a yellow card, considering that this conduct, although reproachable, does not fit the type of crime envisaged in the General Law of Sport.
In the sports arena, the player was sanctioned by the Superior Court of Sports Justice (STJD), which suspended him for one year.
Before reaching the Supreme Court, the Superior Court of Justice (STJ) had denied a 'habeas corpus' on the understanding that cards influence as a tiebreaker criterion and, therefore, can affect the final result of the tournament, an interpretation that was rejected by the Supreme Court.
The Prosecutor's Office argues that the player would have received about 5,632 dollars to force yellow cards in three rounds, but the magistrates who benefited him considered that the intention to benefit bets is not within the scope of the crime if there is no impact on the result or the competition.
The judge in charge of the process, magistrate André Mendonça, voted against the granting of the 'habeas corpus' considering that there were sufficient elements for the opening of the process, but was in the minority.
Bruno Henrique is directly accused of fraud and not of violations of the sports code.
According to magistrate Gilmar Mendes, whose vote was decisive, provoking a single yellow card 'is not capable of altering or falsify the result of a sporting competition', a requirement demanded by law to constitute a crime.
The Supreme Court's ruling, however, does not automatically apply to other similar cases, such as that of striker Bruno Henrique, from Flamengo, also investigated for alleged manipulation through cards.
