Brazil files charges against former president Jair Bolsonaro over alleged coup plot

Brazil’s Attorney General’s Office has filed charges against former right-wing president Jair Bolsonaro in connection with an alleged plot to overturn the results of the 2022 presidential election.

The charges, which must be formally accepted by the Supreme Court, follow a recommendation from Brazil’s national police.

In addition to Bolsonaro, Prosecutor-General Paulo Gonet filed charges against 33 other individuals, accusing them of involvement in an attempted coup d’état, forming an armed criminal organization, and attempting to violently abolish the rule of law.

This was revealed in a statement from Gonet’s office.

Brazil Police reports from November indicated that Bolsonaro had “directly and actively participated” in plotting the coup alongside his supporters.

They also claimed Bolsonaro was aware of a plan by soldiers to kill Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, the president-elect, as well as Lula’s vice president and a Supreme Court judge.

Bolsonaro has vehemently denied these accusations.

His defense team expressed “dismay and indignation” over the charges, asserting that Bolsonaro had never collaborated with any movement aimed at undermining Brazil’s democratic rule of law.

His son, Flávio Bolsonaro, also took to X (formerly Twitter) to claim there was no proof against his father.

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The charges stem from the January 8, 2023, attack when Bolsonaro’s supporters, refusing to accept Lula’s election victory, stormed the Brazilian Congress, government buildings, and the Supreme Court in Brasília Brazil, causing extensive damage.

In addition to these charges, Bolsonaro faces several other legal proceedings.

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Brazilian police have accused him of illegally selling jewelry and luxury watches he received as official gifts during his term in office, particularly from a visit to Saudi Arabia, for personal gain.

He has also been accused of arranging forged vaccination passports for himself, his family, and employees during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Bolsonaro has consistently denied these allegations.