Former Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro has been denounced by the Attorney General’s Office (PGR) for his alleged involvement in the events that led to the invasion of the Brazilian government headquarters on January 8, 2023.
Bolsonaro is accused of five crimes: attempted violent abolition of the Democratic Rule of Law, coup d’état, armed criminal organization, qualified damage with violence and serious threat, and deterioration of protected property. If the charges are accepted by the Supreme Federal Court (STF) and result in conviction, the total penalties could reach 43 years in prison.
According to prosecutors, the alleged conspiracy aimed to prevent Bolsonaro’s successor, President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, from taking office and included a plan to poison Lula.
In addition to Bolsonaro, 33 other people are accused of participating in the coup attempt.
Bolsonaro spoke out after the charges. On the social media platform X, without providing evidence, Bolsonaro accused the PGR of “fabricating false accusations.” He stated that “the world is watching what is happening in Brazil.”
Invoking persecution, the former president said that Brazil has become “authoritarian.” “Every authoritarian regime, in its thirst for power, needs to fabricate internal enemies to justify persecutions, censorship, and arbitrary arrests,” he said.
The evidence against Bolsonaro was mainly gathered after the testimony of Lieutenant Colonel Mauro Cid, former aide to the Presidency, who made a deal to reveal everything he knew in exchange for a reduced sentence.
As a sign of how Brazil remains divided two and a half years after Lula’s election, Bolsonaro’s critics celebrated the charges, saying the former president should be imprisoned, while his supporters insist he is innocent and a victim of persecution.
The focus now is on Supreme Federal Court Minister Alexandre de Moraes, who will have to assess the merits of the charges presented by the Attorney General and decide whether the case should go to trial.
Sources: Uol and BBC