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Brazil: defeated Flávio Bolsonaro ordered to surrender passports
· Confirmed
In Short: Far-right senator Flávio Bolsonaro was ordered to surrender his passports and barred from leaving Brazil just hours after his loss in the presidential election to leftist president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, as reported by The Guardian and Times Now.
The Guardian and BBC (United Kingdom) both reported that the supreme court judge's ruling was related to a money-laundering investigation involving Flávio Bolsonaro. The BBC noted that the ruling was issued by supreme court justice Alexandre de Moraes, who also oversaw the trial of Bolsonaro's father, former president Jair Bolsonaro, for attempting a coup.
According to The Guardian, the court's brief ruling only refers to a criminal case in which the federal police are investigating Flávio Bolsonaro over his possible involvement in a money-laundering scheme. The Guardian also reported that the court cancelled all of Bolsonaro’s passports, including the diplomatic one he holds as a congressman, and ordered him to hand them over within 24 hours.
The Guardian and Times Now reported that Bolsonaro had claimed the two-hour extension of voting had harmed the election, despite his campaign also arguing for an extension. The Guardian noted that Bolsonaro was the first to speak publicly about the matter, before Brazilian media were even aware of the judge’s decision.
The Guardian and BBC (United Kingdom) reported that Bolsonaro posted a video saying the decision was based on an interview his brother, Eduardo Bolsonaro, gave last Friday urging his brother to leave Brazil if he lost the election. The Guardian noted that Bolsonaro had still not publicly reversed his demand for an annulment and planned to file another case to have Lula’s ticket disqualified over alleged abuse of economic power.
The Guardian and IANS LIVE (India) reported that with all the votes counted, Lula received 51.79 per cent of the valid votes, compared with 48.21 per cent for Flávio Bolsonaro. The Guardian noted that Bolsonaro had claimed the two-hour extension of voting had harmed the election, despite his campaign also arguing for an extension.
The Guardian and teleSUR English reported that investigators are analyzing audio and digital messages that link Flávio Bolsonaro to dealings with Daniel Vorcaro, the former owner of Master Bank, and police have asked for a 90-day extension to finish financial examinations and process international cooperation requests.
Both The Guardian and BBC (United Kingdom) reported that Flávio Bolsonaro had been persuaded to drop his plan to seek to annul the election, which he had announced after the result was declared on Sunday night.
The Guardian and Times Now reported that Bolsonaro had claimed the two-hour extension of voting had harmed the election, despite his campaign also arguing for an extension. The Guardian noted that Bolsonaro was the first to speak publicly about the matter, before Brazilian media were even aware of the judge’s decision.
The Guardian and BBC (United Kingdom) reported that Bolsonaro posted a video saying the decision was based on an interview his brother, Eduardo Bolsonaro, gave last Friday urging his brother to leave Brazil if he lost the election.
The Guardian and IANS LIVE (India) reported that Bolsonaro argued that the decision had disadvantaged voters in areas where polling stations were not reopened and that his legal team would challenge the results.
The Guardian and teleSUR English reported that the confidential ruling is part of an investigation involving Bolsonaro and lawyer Willer Tomaz, according to Brazil's public news agency Agencia Brasil.
The Guardian and BBC (United Kingdom) reported that Bolsonaro had still not publicly reversed his demand for an annulment and planned to file another case to have Lula’s ticket disqualified over alleged abuse of economic power.
What's confirmed
- Far-right senator banned from leaving country as supreme court judge’s ruling makes reference to money-laundering case Far-right senator banned from leaving country as supreme court judge’s ruling makes reference to money-laundering case The far-right senator Flávio Bolsonaro was banned from leaving Brazil and ordered to surrender his passports just hours after his dramatic loss in the presidential election to the leftist president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.
- Rio De Janeiro, Oct 27 (IANS) Brazilian Supreme Federal Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes has ordered defeated presidential candidate Flavio Bolsonaro to surrender his passports to the Federal Police and barred him from leaving the country, Brazilian media reported.
What's still developing
- When his Senate term ends early next year, Bolsonaro will be out of public office for the first time in 24 years, and therefore without the special jurisdiction afforded to officeholders.
- In a video posted on social media, he said he had just left a visit to his father, who is under house arrest in Brasília, when “Lula’s federal police were at his door and in the middle of the street, and I was served with an order to hand over my passports and I am also prohibited from leaving the country”.
- He added that, although his brother – who is in self-imposed exile in the US – told a US podcast on Friday that he favoured the senator leaving Brazil if he lost the election, “I never said that”.
- "I left the government more than a year ago and I continue to suffer relentless persecution," Mr Bolsonaro said when contacted by Brazilian newspaper Folha following searches carried out by police at dozens of properties.
- Brazil's ex-President Jair Bolsonaro has surrendered his passport as the investigation continues into the 2023 storming of Brazil's Congress by his supporters.
- They are suspected of plotting to keep Mr Bolsonaro in power following his election defeat in October 2022.
- Brazil's federal police only gave limited details about the operation it carried out on Thursday, but said it was targeting a "criminal organisation involved in the attempted coup".
- Mr Bolsonaro says the operation is politically motivated.
- Three of Mr Bolsonaro's allies have been arrested.
- Police accuse them of spreading doubts about the electoral system, which became a rallying cry for his supporters, who claimed the election was stolen from Mr Bolsonaro.
- Mr Bolsonaro was in the US when the attack on Congress happened.
- A day after losing Brazil’s presidential election, pro-US Senator Flávio Bolsonaro has been told to hand over his passport and stay in the country.