Former Brazil president Jair Bolsonaro is accused of plotting coup after five arrested for plotting to KILL his successor after election loss
Former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro has been indicted for allegedly staging a coup to keep him in power after his defeat in the 2022 elections.
Brazil’s federal police said Thursday they have charged the conservative former president and 36 others.
Police said their findings will be presented on Thursday to Brazil’s Supreme Court, which must decide whether to refer them to Attorney General Paulo Gonet, who will formally charge Bolsonaro and put him on trial, or dismiss the investigation.
The former right-wing president has denied claims that he tried to stay in office after his narrow 2022 election defeat to his rival, left-wing President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. Bolsonaro has since faced a series of legal threats.
Police said in a brief statement that the Supreme Court had agreed to release the names of all 37 people charged “to prevent the spread of false news.”
It will likely take several days for the court to review the 700-page police document, Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes said.
Former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro has been indicted for allegedly staging a coup to keep him in power after his defeat in the 2022 elections.
Dozens of former and current Bolsonaro aides were also charged, including General Walter Braga Netto, who was his running mate in the 2022 campaign; former army commander General Paulo Sérgio Nogueira de Oliveira; Valdemar Costa Neto, the chairman of Bolsonaro’s Liberal Party; and his experienced former advisor, General Augusto Heleno.
The investigation started last year. On Tuesday, four soldiers and a federal police officer were arrested in the same investigation.
Other investigations focus on Bolosnaro’s possible role in smuggling diamond jewelry into Brazil without properly declaring it, and in directing an underling to falsify his and others’ vaccination status. Bolsonaro has denied any involvement in either.
Another investigation found he had abused his authority to sow doubt about the country’s voting system, and judges have banned him from running again until 2030.
The far-reaching investigations have weakened Bolsonaro’s status as leader of Brazil’s right wing, said Carlos Melo, a professor of political science at Insper University in Sao Paulo.
“Bolsonaro should already be banned from running in the 2026 elections,” Melo told The Associated Press.
“And if he is convicted, he could also face jail time at that time.” To avoid ending up behind bars, he will have to convince Supreme Court justices that he has nothing to do with a plot involving dozens of his tools. That’s a tall order,” Melo said.
On Tuesday, federal police arrested four soldiers and a federal police officer accused of plotting to overthrow the government after the 2022 elections, including alleged plans to assassinate Lula and other top officials.