Jair Bolsonaro is under investigation after he was ‘illegally filmed harassing a humpback whale while riding a jet ski’

Former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro is under investigation after he allegedly “harassed” a humpback whale while riding a personal jet ski off the coast of Sao Paulo.

Bolsonaro appeared at the federal police in Sao Paulo on Tuesday for a meeting with officers, along with his lawyer and former adviser who was also present at the time of the alleged incident.

In a video from June last year that circulated on social media, a man is seen riding a personal jet ski close to a whale, apparently recording the encounter on a cell phone.

Federal prosecutors, who are also investigating the case, said the man appeared to be Bolsonaro.

According to Brazilian law, motorized vessels must maintain a distance of at least 100 meters from whales and other cetaceans. Any deliberate attempt to get closer can lead to a prison sentence of up to two to five years and a fine.

The man on the personal jet ski appeared to be about 50 feet away from the animal, prosecutors said last year.

The investigation is just one of many legal problems facing the former far-right leader. Last week, officers in the capital Brasilia questioned Bolsonaro for allegedly plotting a coup in an attempt to remove his successor, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, from power.

For Bolsonaro’s large base of supporters, this case is yet another example of their former leader being politically persecuted – an argument he has often made since leaving office.

It’s just one of many legal problems he faces.

Since leaving office a year ago, Bolsonaro has been banned from running for office until 2030, has been investigated for plotting a coup to remove his successor from power and has had his passport stripped.

Last week, officers in the capital Brasilia questioned Bolsonaro for allegedly plotting a coup in an attempt to oust his successor, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, from power. Bolsonaro, whose passport was seized in a previous police operation, chose to remain silent.

Supreme Court documents show that investigators believe Bolsonaro and some of his aides, including former ministers and top military advisers, drafted a decree that would have declared the 2022 electoral vote fraudulent if Bolsonaro had lost the election to his left-wing opponent Lula.

The man following the humpback whale in the video as it pulls its tail out of the water. Federal prosecutors, who are also investigating the case, said the man appeared to be Bolsonaro

The man on a jet ski chasing the whale. According to Brazilian law, motorized vessels must maintain a distance of at least 100 meters from whales and other cetaceans

The decree also provided for the arrest of a Supreme Court judge and the calling of new elections. Bolsonaro lost, but the decree was never issued and the alleged plan was never put into practice.

A panel of judges also ruled that Bolsonaro was ineligible to serve until 2030. It ruled that he had abused his power and raised unfounded doubts about the country’s electronic voting system.

Last year, Bolsonaro, his wife and close associates faced questions from investigators in yet another case, after an attempt to sneak in diamond jewelery worth a reported $3 million (£2.4 million) and the sale of two luxury watches that Bolsonaro received as a gift from Saudi Arabia during his time in office.

Police are also investigating the country’s intelligence agency, claiming to have spied on Bolsonaro’s political opponents during his term, which ended in December 2022.

Bolsonaro has denied all allegations.

Legal experts say that if police can prove that Bolsonaro deliberately approached the whale, he could face a fine at best. According to online news site G1, a local politician was found guilty of similar charges and fined 2,500 reais (£397) at the same location.

Thousands of Brazilians poured into the streets of Sao Paulo on Sunday after Bolsonaro called for a show of support as he is accused of plotting a coup to stay in power.

Former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro (photo) sings the national anthem during a rally in Sao Paulo

Bolsonaro and some of his former top aides are under investigation over allegations that they plotted a coup to oust his successor, Luis Inacio Lula da Silva.

Dressed in the green and yellow of the Brazilian flag, which the ex-president claimed as a symbol during his time in office, an immense crowd of his supporters thronged Paulista Avenue, one of the main thoroughfares in the country’s economic capital.

Bolsonaro arrived waving the Israeli flag – a repudiation of President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva’s comments comparing Israel’s offensive in Gaza to the Holocaust – before placing his hand on his chest for the national anthem.

The 68-year-old former army officer had called on his supporters to attend a ‘peaceful meeting in defense of the democratic constitutional state’.

Bolsonaro has had his passport confiscated by police as he and his inner circle face scrutiny over plans to stay in power after losing the 2022 election to Lula.

The far-right former president has denied the allegations and refused to answer questions during a half-hour interrogation last Thursday at federal police headquarters in the city of Brasilia.