On Wednesday (20), Brazil’s Federal Police announced that it had indicted former President Jair Bolsonaro and his son, Federal Representative Eduardo Bolsonaro, for coercion in the course of proceedings and attempting to abolish the democratic rule of law.
The decision came after the police concluded their investigation into Eduardo Bolsonaro’s actions with the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump to promote retaliatory measures against the Brazilian government and Supreme Court justices.
In recent months, the U.S. government has announced a series of actions against Brazil and Brazilian authorities, such as a 50 percent tariff on imports of Brazilian products, a trade investigation into Pix instant payment system, and financial sanctions against Justice Alexandre de Moraes under the Magnitsky Act.
Trump and members of his administration claim that Bolsonaro is the target of a “witch hunt” and that Moraes is acting against freedom of expression and against American companies that run social networks.
In May, Attorney General Paulo Gonet requested that the Supreme Court open a Federal Police investigation into Eduardo and Jair Bolsonaro over the parliamentarian’s alleged efforts to incite the U.S. government to take action against Moraes, who was chosen as the rapporteur for the case because he also led the investigations into the coup plot and fake news.
In this case, former President Jair Bolsonaro is being investigated for sending funds via Pix to cover his son’s expenses abroad while he sought sanctions to pressure the Brazilian justice system. In March, Eduardo Bolsonaro requested a 122-day leave from his parliamentary term and moved to the United States, alleging political persecution.
