The TRF-3 (Federal Regional Court of the 3rd Region) has acquitted four defendants accused of involvement in irregularities related to contracts between construction companies and the Government of São Paulo for the project's northern section of Rodoanel. The 5th Panel of the court unanimously recognized the prescription of the crime of criminal association, and by majority, decided on acquittal due to a lack of evidence regarding the violations of the bidding process. Judge André Nekatschalow voted to uphold the earlier conviction, but was outvoted by his colleagues Paulo Fontes and Ali Mazloum, which indicates a divergence in the court's perspective on the evidence presented.

The judgment took place last November, with the case becoming final on December 18, when all avenues for appeal were exhausted. Benedito Aparecido Trida, Carlos Henrique Barbosa Lemos, Pedro da Silva, and Laurence Casagrande Lourenço had been indicted in 2018 following the Operation Pedra no Caminho, which was triggered by the Federal Police as a derivative of the larger Lava Jato investigation in São Paulo. This operation aimed at uncovering extensive corruption and financial crimes associated with public contracts in the region.

The investigations revealed allegations of inflated costs up to R$ 480 million, indicating significant potential corruption and misuse of public funds. The acquittal of the defendants raises questions about accountability and transparency in public procurement processes, especially in large infrastructure projects in Brazil, which have been under scrutiny due to past corruption scandals. This case reflects ongoing challenges in addressing corruption in Brazilian politics and the complexities involved in proving such crimes in a court of law.