Federal police in Brazil claim that former President Jair Bolsonaro sought asylum in Argentina amid a coup investigation in 2024.
The federal police in Brazil have revealed findings from the mobile phone of former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro indicating that he had considered fleeing to Argentina to request political asylum from Argentinian President Javier Milei.
According to a police report released on Wednesday, the letter intending to seek asylum was saved on Bolsonaro’s mobile phone in February 2024, just days after his passport was seized due to an investigation into his alleged involvement in a coup plot.
It remains unclear whether the request for asylum was actually sent, with the Argentinian president’s office not offering an immediate response to these claims.
The asylum request document, now part of the final police report, has led to the formal accusation against Bolsonaro and his son Eduardo, who is based in the United States, of attempting to interfere with the legal proceedings concerning the coup trial.
Bolsonaro’s trial is set to commence on September 2, where he could face up to 40 years in prison if found guilty of plotting to overthrow President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva in 2022.
The police recommend charging the ex-president and his son with “coercion in the judicial process” and “abolition of the democratic law,” which could result in a combined sentence of up to 12 years in prison.
Recordings found on devices seized during the investigation suggest attempts to intimidate authorities and hinder the investigation into the attack on democracy, including efforts to seek external influence.
Bolsonaro, under house arrest since early August, maintains his innocence. His son, Eduardo, resigned from his position as a Brazilian congressman in March and moved to the US, where he advocates for the Trump administration’s intervention on behalf of his father.
These efforts have been fruitful, leading to the Trump administration taking punitive measures against Brazil, including sanctions against judicial officials and a substantial tariff on many Brazilian exports to the US in response to Bolsonaro’s trial.
According to a police report released on Wednesday, the letter intending to seek asylum was saved on Bolsonaro’s mobile phone in February 2024, just days after his passport was seized due to an investigation into his alleged involvement in a coup plot.
It remains unclear whether the request for asylum was actually sent, with the Argentinian president’s office not offering an immediate response to these claims.
The asylum request document, now part of the final police report, has led to the formal accusation against Bolsonaro and his son Eduardo, who is based in the United States, of attempting to interfere with the legal proceedings concerning the coup trial.
Bolsonaro’s trial is set to commence on September 2, where he could face up to 40 years in prison if found guilty of plotting to overthrow President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva in 2022.
The police recommend charging the ex-president and his son with “coercion in the judicial process” and “abolition of the democratic law,” which could result in a combined sentence of up to 12 years in prison.
Recordings found on devices seized during the investigation suggest attempts to intimidate authorities and hinder the investigation into the attack on democracy, including efforts to seek external influence.
Bolsonaro, under house arrest since early August, maintains his innocence. His son, Eduardo, resigned from his position as a Brazilian congressman in March and moved to the US, where he advocates for the Trump administration’s intervention on behalf of his father.
These efforts have been fruitful, leading to the Trump administration taking punitive measures against Brazil, including sanctions against judicial officials and a substantial tariff on many Brazilian exports to the US in response to Bolsonaro’s trial.
