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The president of Angola, João Lourenço, authorized the hiring of a consultant by Edeltrudes Costa, current chief of staff and right-hand man of the head of state of that African country. One of the companies, which aimed to modernize Angolan airports, won several million euros in public contracts and the money ended up in Portugal, where it was used to buy luxury homes in Sintra and Cascais.
Eldetrudes Costa also sent money to Panama, through a branch of the then Banco Espírito Santo (BES) in the Madeira free zone.
Since João Lourenço assumed power, Eldetrudes Costa is his right arm, moving for several years in the corridors of Angolan power, including during the mandate of José Eduardo dos Santos, having been Minister of State and Chief of Cabinet during that period. period.
An investigation of the TVI found that several public contracts were awarded with the approval of the Angolan president.
The company EMFC – Consulting, SA, is owned by Eldetrudes Costa with unlimited powers, and his mandate as head of the company can only be revoked with his own authorization and has no expiration date.
In an order approved by the President of the Republic of Angola, the hiring of Roland Berger is mentioned, in a document that provides for the outsourcing of EMFC.
The contract refers to February 2019 and the grantor who signs for EMFC is Portuguese: Nuno Monteiro Dente, who has been a representative of Roland Berger since 2018, thus being involved in both contracted companies.
This Portuguese was one of the members of the lists of the Liberal Initiative in the last legislative elections, competing for the circle of Viana do Castelo. Contacted by TVI for a request for clarification, he never gave any response.
Much of that amount was transferred to Portugal, prompting the central bank to investigate the transfers and Eldetrudes Costa, relying on serious flaws in preventing money laundering and terrorist financing.
Despite never having held positions that earned him great fortunes, Eldetrudes Costa had, between euros, dollars and kwanzas, the equivalent of 20 million euros, according to a bank statement to which TVI had access.
With that money that came to Portugal, he bought, among other things, a house in Cascais that cost more than 2.5 million euros, and which is in the name of his ex-wife, Ariete Faria, president of the Board of Directors of EMFC. .
Through an offshore in Madeira, and with money that passed through BES, he also bought a luxury apartment on a property owned by Donald Trump in Panama.
Another contract discovered by TVI It refers to a service for the National Electoral Commission of Angola, in a job done by the Edeltrudes Costa company for the elections that ended with the victory of João Lourenço. Only with this agreement will have raised about one million euros.
Contacted by TVI, neither João Lourenço nor Eldetrudes Costa provided clarification.
