The Public Prosecutor accused journalists and SIC’s information director for the crime of disobedience for Operation Marquis’s “illicit reproduction of procedural documents” in April.

A note from the District Attorney General of Lisbon (PGDL) states, without specifying who in the SIC, that the defendants, journalists, including the director of information, coordinator of a program, responsible for reporting and publishing, “decided to broadcast on television, a report (…), the content of which consisted, in large part, in the illicit reproduction of procedural parts of the so-called “Operation Marquis” process.

The PGDL reinforces that the disclosure of such procedural documents was made “without the authorization of the magistrates presiding over this case,” which involves former Prime Minister José Sócrates.

The Public Prosecutor understands that the defendants have disclosed the aforementioned pieces despite being “aware that the law prohibits the disclosure / reproduction of the registration of images or sound recordings related to procedures, unless authorized by the competent judicial authority and unopposed.”.

The investigation was conducted by the Criminal Investigation and Action Department of Lisbon.