Eminently respected Portuguese lawyer Ricardo Sá Fernandes has just published a book in defence of his client – former economy minister Manuel Pinho – as Pinho awaits an appeal against a 10-year jail term for corruption, tax fraud and money laundering.
Fernandes’ thesis is that his client has been made a scapegoat for the justice system, and is innocent. He “guarantees that he does not intend to influence the judges of the Court of Appeal who are now assessing (Pinho’s) appeal”, explain reports.
Manuel Pinho is the first former member of a Portuguese government to be sentenced to jail for these kind of offences – but it has long been believed that he won’t in fact serve jail time, as he has already been under house arrest for over three years.
