The criminal proceeding is still in the preparatory investigation phase, "pending investigative investigations", so it is in secret from justice, said Álvaro João.
The preparatory instruction, which corresponds to the investigation phase in Portugal, consists of the procedural phase dedicated to the investigation and collection of evidence.
The businesswoman reaffirmed this Thursday that forged documents were used in the civil lawsuit that runs against her in Angola, in the context of which her assets were seized, and added that she "does not know the content" of the criminal cases, "kept secret until today".
Contrary to what happens in the civil case, in which Isabel dos Santos can be represented by her representatives, in the case of the criminal case "she will have to appear to be heard" and respond to the accusations that are made, the spokesman explained. of the PGR.
Asked about the new statement from Isabel dos Santos, released this Thursday, in which the company reiterates that false documents were used as evidence to arrest the assets, in the context of a civil process in which the Angolan State claims a credit of more than billion US dollars, Álvaro João said that there is nothing more to add in relation to what the PGR answered and that all the challenges must be presented in court.
The PGR guaranteed that the request for seizure of Isabel dos Santos' assets was not based on the falsified passport mentioned by the businesswoman, whose authenticity was being investigated, but on documents that attested the fear of dissipation of the assets.
The State's action against Isabel dos Santos, in the scope of the civil procedure in which the State claims a credit of more than one billion dollars, was filed on 2 March at the Provincial Court of Luanda.
The action follows up on the preventive seizure of bank accounts and holdings by businesswoman Isabel dos Santos, her husband Sindika Dokolo and manager Mário Leite da Silva, decreed by the Luanda Provincial Court in December.
