Authorities accuse Bolsonaro of working with US to impose Brazil sanctions, as Trump threatens 50 percent tariffs.
Federal police have raided the home and headquarters of former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro, with authorities ordering him to wear an ankle monitor amid concerns he may flee the country.
Police in a statement on Friday said they had issued search warrants ordered by the country’s Supreme Court, but did not name Bolsonaro, who governed Latin America’s largest country from 2019 to 2022.
Brazil’s Supreme Court later confirmed the raid, quoting the country’s prosecutor general as saying there was a “concrete” possibility of Bolsonaro fleeing the country amid his ongoing trial over alleged efforts to overturn President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva’s election victory in January 2023.
The court said that Bolsonaro had been ordered to wear an ankle bracelet, stop using social media and end contacts with any foreign officials. He was also barred from approaching foreign embassies or consulates in Brazil.
The top court’s statement also revealed that Brazilian police have accused Bolsonaro of working with his son, Eduardo, a Brazilian lawmaker who has been lobbying in Washington, DC, to influence the administration of US President Donald Trump to impose sanctions on Brazil.
The claim comes after Trump earlier this month threatened Brazil with 50 percent tariffs on goods if Bolsonaro was not granted legal reprieve.
Responding to the latest actions, Bolsonaro’s lawyers, expressed “surprise and indignation” at what they called “severe precautionary measures imposed against him”. They added that Bolsonaro has so far complied with court orders.
In a post on social media, Eduardo Bolsonaro alleged the legal actions were retaliation for a video his father posted on social media on Thursday, thanking Trump for his support.
Speaking to reporters on Friday, the elder Bolsonaro denied that he was considering fleeing the country.
“The goal is supreme humiliation,” he said.
Trump tariff threats
In a Truth Social post last week, Trump claimed that Brazilian authorities have “done nothing but come after [Bolsonaro], day after day, night after night, month after month, year after year!”
“He is not guilty of anything, except having fought for THE PEOPLE,” wrote Trump.
Trump himself faced four criminal indictments following his first term, including one related to his efforts to overturn his own 2020 election loss. He, like Bolsonaro, has repeatedly claimed he has been the victim of a political “witch hunt”.
The pressure campaign comes as Trump continues to threaten sweeping reciprocal tariffs on dozens of trade partners, although the threat against Brazil has stood out for its particularly personal tone.
Trump has maintained friendly ties with Bolsonaro, sometimes called the “Trump of the Tropics”, throughout his first term.
Speaking on Thursday, Lula said Trump’s tariff threat lacked “logic”.
“We cannot have President Trump forgetting that he was elected to govern the US, not to be the emperor of the world,” Lula said.
He added that Bolsonaro was not “being judged personally” by the country’s independent judiciary, but “being judged by the acts he tried to organise a coup d’etat”.
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