The former governor of Rio de Janeiro state was arrested on Thursday as part of a corruption investigation linked to a World Cup project and other works worth billions of dollars, in a blow to Brazil's ruling party that may fuel political instability.
Federal prosecutors accused Sergio Cabral, 53, of leading a criminal organization that took 224 million reais ($66 million) in bribes from construction firms in exchange for infrastructure contracts from 2007 to 2014, the years he served as governor.
The projects included the renovation of the famed Maracana soccer stadium, where the final match of soccer's 2014 World Cup was held, along with public works in some of Rio's biggest slums and the construction of a major highway around the city's outskirts.