In the statement read by the lawyer, Luis Filipe Vieira says: “In light of the events of recent days, within the scope of the red card operation, in which I am directly targeted, and while the investigation may be a factor of inconvenience, I immediately suspend my duties as president of Sport Lisboa e Benfica as well as from all members of the club. I appeal to all Benfica fans remain calm in defending the good reputation of the wonderful institution that is Benfica.”

And so Magalhães e Silva confirmed it to reporters “From this moment, Mr. Luis Filipe Vieira has suspended his duties as President of SLB and its subsidiaries.”

The lawyer added that “The suspension is not a concession” and that the decision was simultaneously communicated to the media and “interested structures”.

Asked by reporters about the time of this comment, Magalhães e Silva stated that he is on the verge of it Comment “While the exercise of functions could harm the ongoing investigation.”

About Luis Filipe Vieira, the lawyer said he exists “Perfect serenity” and that this statement reveals “a sense of responsibility between the individual’s personal position and the institutional position and the dominance of the institutional position over the personal position”.

Luis Felipe Vieira, his son Thiago Vieira and two businessmen trusted by Benfica’s president, José Antonio dos Santos – known as the “Chicken King” – and Bruno Macedo, responsible for brokering Jorge Jesus’ return to the club, were He was detained on Wednesday as part of an investigation by the Central Department of Investigation and Criminal Procedure.

In the disagreement the facts that have occurred, “essentially, from 2014 to the present and likely to be part of the practice, among other things, offenses of dishonesty, restrictive fraud, forgery, tax fraud, and money laundering,” as referred to by the DCIAP.

The four arrests occurred as a result of searches that targeted, in addition to Vieira, the headquarters of Benfica, businessman Jose Antonio dos Santos and the headquarters of Novo Banco.

The Public Prosecutor’s Office confirmed that 45 searches were carried out in “company headquarters, their homes, law firms and a banking institution”, in “the regions of Lisbon, Torres Vedras and Braga”.

The investigation by the Tax Agency is the analysis of “business and financing with a total amount exceeding 100 million euros, which may have caused significant damage to the state and some companies”.

On Thursday, the investigative judge identified the detainees, and the defense consulted the evidentiary evidence until 22:00.