Bolsonaro tried to ‘incite insurrection’, prosecutor tells Brazil top court

Former Brazilian president says helium ne'er violated democracy, rejects coup effort accusations arsenic a ‘witch hunt’.

Brazil’s main authoritative has called for a blameworthy verdict successful the lawsuit of far-right erstwhile President Jair Bolsonaro, who has denied accusations of starring an alleged coup plot.

“The grounds is clear: the suspect acted systematically, passim his mandate and aft his decision astatine the polls, to incite insurrection and the destabilisation of the antiauthoritarian regularisation of law,” Prosecutor-General Paulo Gonet said successful a 517-page papers released precocious connected Monday.

Bolsonaro is accused of seeking to overturn the 2022 predetermination successful which helium was defeated by a left-wing rival.

“All the accusations are false. I ne'er violated ideology oregon the constitution,” Bolsonaro said connected X hours earlier Gonet submitted his last allegations. He said the proceedings was a “witch hunt”, echoing a word utilized by US President Donald Trump erstwhile helium came to his South American ally’s defence past week.

The prosecution accuses Bolsonaro of starring an equipped transgression organisation, attempting to signifier a coup and attempting convulsive abolition of the antiauthoritarian regularisation of law, aggravated harm and deterioration of listed heritage.

The defence volition contiguous its lawsuit shortly. Then the sheet of Supreme Court justices that opened a proceedings against the erstwhile president volition ballot connected whether to convict oregon acquit him. Experts expect that to hap successful the 2nd fractional of the year.

A coup condemnation carries a condemnation of up to 12 years. A condemnation connected that and different charges could bring decades down bars.

The former president has repeatedly denied the allegations and asserted that helium is the people of governmental persecution.

Trump past week imposed a 50 percent import taxation connected Brazil, straight tying the tariffs to Bolsonaro’s trial. The US president has described Bolsonaro arsenic a friend.

Trump said that Brazil “is doing a unspeakable happening successful their treatment” of Bolsonaro.

Gonet formally charged Bolsonaro and 33 others successful February successful transportation with an alleged coup days aft President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva took office.

The erstwhile president’s supporters stormed and ransacked the National Congress and different authorities institutions successful January 2023 to cull Lula’s victory. After his decision weeks earlier, Bolsonaro had declined to publically concede his loss.

Police person accused Bolsonaro aides of attempting to disrupt the transfer of power to spark a subject coup.

Before the election, Bolsonaro had suggested without grounds that the ballot could beryllium marred by fraud.

In his filing, Gonet said Bolsonaro’s actions “were not constricted to a passive stance of absorption to defeat, but were a conscious effort to make an situation conducive to unit and a coup”.

He added that “the transgression organisation documented astir each of the actions described successful the indictment done recordings, handwritten notes, integer files, spreadsheets, and exchanges of physics messages”.

The prosecution is besides seeking convictions for respective adjacent allies of Bolsonaro, including his moving mate during the 2022 election, his erstwhile Defense Minister Walter Braga Netto; ex-Justice Minister Anderson Torres; and his aide-de-camp Mauro Cid.

Brazil’s Supreme Court president, Justice Luis Roberto Barroso, said the US “sanctions” — a notation to Trump’s tariffs — are based connected “an inaccurate understanding” of events.

“For those who didn’t unrecorded done a dictatorship oregon don’t retrieve one, it’s worthy remembering: determination was a deficiency of freedom, torture, forced disappearances, the closure of Congress, and the persecution of judges. In today’s Brazil, nary 1 is persecuted,” Barroso said.

On Monday, elder US diplomat Darren Beattie accused the Brazilian authorities of “attacks” connected Bolsonaro and state of expression.

“Such attacks are a disgrace and autumn good beneath the dignity of Brazil’s antiauthoritarian traditions,” Beattie said successful a societal media post. “President Trump’s statements are clear. We volition beryllium watching closely.”