Brazilian agency retains employee who made gesture similar to Nazi salute
16 de April de 2025
By Jadson Lima – From Cenarium
MANAUS (AM) – The employee of the Brazilian Agricultural Research Corporation (Embrapa), Marcelo Costa Mota, aged 46, remains on the institution’s staff 78 days after CENARIUM revealed a photo in which he appears making a gesture similar to the “Sieg Heil” salute used by Adolf Hitler in the totalitarian German regime during the Second World War (1939–1945). The company informed the report on Wednesday, 16th, that the man is undergoing a disciplinary process, expected to conclude in May 2025.
CENARIUM consulted data available on the transparency portal, which showed that Marcelo Costa is allocated to the Information Technology Centre of Embrapa Western Amazon and receives a gross salary of R$12,800 — around R$10,500 after deductions from the payroll. The table shows the employee was paid in January, February and March this year.
On Wednesday, 16th, in a new statement, the company pointed out that prior to the opening of the procedure, during a Summary Preliminary Investigation (IPS), Embrapa’s Internal Affairs Office “ascertained that the events occurred outside the work environment, with no link to the Company, and should therefore be subject to criminal rather than administrative investigation.” The statement also notes that the Federal Police (PF) was notified about the case in January this year.
The report contacted the PF’s regional office in Amazonas (PF/AM) to obtain a position on the possible opening of an investigation, since it falls under the jurisdiction of the PF and the Federal Public Prosecutor’s Office (MPF) to investigate allegations involving the use of Nazi symbols and gestures associated with that context. There has been no response so far.
The Brazilian Racism Law defines as a crime “the manufacture, marketing, distribution and dissemination of symbols, emblems, ornaments, badges or propaganda that use the swastika or hooked cross to promote Nazism.” The offence is covered by Article 20, §1, of Law No. 7,716/1989, and the penalty ranges from two to five years’ imprisonment and a fine.
Article 287 of the Brazilian Penal Code defines the crime of advocating a criminal act and provides for a penalty of three to six months’ detention or a fine “for the public glorification of a criminal act or its perpetrator.” “When there is an association with symbols or ideologies that promote discrimination or intolerance, the conduct may be assessed under the current legislation,” said specialists consulted by the report.
Revisit the case
The photograph of Marcelo Costa was published on 25 January this year, five days after Elon Musk, businessman and member of Donald Trump’s government, made a similar gesture at the inauguration of the President of the United States (USA) in Washington, the country’s capital. Following the repercussion of the case, Embrapa stated that an Ethical Inquiry Procedure (PAE) had been opened by Embrapa’s Ethics Committee (CEE).
In the image, the Embrapa employee wears light-coloured shorts and a black shirt while raising his right arm tilted upwards, with his fingers slightly pointing down. He is also holding a red, white and black flag, featuring an eagle and a cross. The symbols and gesture are similar to those used by Nazi Germany. Contacted for comment, the employee stated that he would forward the questions to his legal counsel.
Technician Marcelo Costa Mota also managed a group, according to information obtained by CENARIUM at the time, which bore the same name as the label: Kingdom of Darkness Productions. In one of the messages sent in this group, a member — whose identity could not be confirmed — states: “if the commie a**hole is still here, we’re going to jail.”
In the same message, sent at 15:51, the man describes a circular tattoo on the back of his hand, which bears resemblance to a swastika. He states that he went to a police station to report a stolen motorbike, and the police officer questioned him about the tattoo.
“I told him [the officer] that it was a black sun, and to me, in my view, it holds important meaning. I had to give a statement about the tattoo before filing the police report [on the vehicle theft],” he said. See message:
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