[1] After working as a merchant, he became a member of the PSD and was elected in 1962 as a substitute senator as part of Guiomard's ticket.
[3] Melo, who was the father of future president Fernando Collor de Mello, was present at the chamber to refute accusations made by his political rival Péricles.
The president of the chamber, Auro de Moura Andrade, called off the session for the time being due to the incident.
[4][6][7] Though both the senators were arrested in flagrante delicto and had multiple witnesses on the chamber floor, they spent very little time in prison and were eventually acquitted by a jury in Brasília.
His widow, Creusa da Silva, and their family eventually to the Federal District in 1977,[10] with her working as a laundrywoman and nanny.