Conservative former President of Brazil Jair Bolsonaro will stand trial for allegedly plotting to poison current radical leftist President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and stage a “coup” following his narrow defeat in the 2022 presidential election, Brazil’s Supreme Federal Tribunal (STF) unanimously ruled on Wednesday.
Bolsonaro, and seven other “co-conspirators” that the court collectively described as the “crucial core” of the alleged plot, will face charges of attempted violent abolition of the democratic rule of law, attempted coup d’état, involvement in an armed criminal organization, and qualified damage and deterioration of listed heritage in the yet-to-be scheduled trial.
A five-member panel of STF Ministers led by Minister Cristiano Zanin held a roughly three-hour session to determine if Bolsonaro should go to trial. The top justices unanimously voted to accept the criminal charges presented by Prosecutor General of Brazil Paulo Gonet in February against the former president and the seven other men.
According to experts consulted by CNN Brasil on Thursday, Jair Bolsonaro, 70, could face up to 39 years in prison if found guilty of all charges.
According to the charges presented by Prosecutor General Gonet in February, Bolsonaro, his 2022 vice presidential running mate Walter Braga Netto, and over 30 other individuals allegedly conspired to poison Lula and stage a coup to nullify the results of the 2022 presidential election, in which Bolsonaro was narrowly defeated by Lula.
The purported plot, which Bolsonaro allegedly “approved” according to Prosecutor General Gonet, also allegedly called for the assassination of current Vice President Geraldo Alckmin and STF Minister Alexandre de Moraes.
The STF informed on its website that the five justices concluded in the deliberations that the Prosecutor General “adequately demonstrated” that the facts it investigated constituted crimes and that there is evidence that can demonstrate that Bolsonaro and the other men accused participated in the purported plot. The STF will rule in the coming days to determine if the remaining groups of men accused by Gonet will also go to trial.
STF Minister Alexandre de Moraes, the case’s rapporteur, stated in the session that the Prosecutor’s Office had “described in detail the commission of the crimes and evidence of the participation of those involved,” which, he stressed, allows the accused to “clearly understand what they are being accused of.”
De Moraes assessed that the complaint showed that there was a “coordinated action to commit crimes against democratic institutions and disrupt the normal process of succession to the Presidency of the Republic,” and that therefore, the “materiality of the crimes is proven,” further justifying his argument based on his analysis of 474 separate complaints.
Bolsonaro addressed reporters moments after the STF ruled that he must go to trial. In his roughly 50-minuted address, the former president denied the accusations and described them as “grave and baseless,” asserting that “it seems to be something personal against me.”
“The coup has no law, no rules, the coup has a conspiracy with the press, parliament, the judiciary, the economy. Armed forces first, society, businessmen, farmers,” Bolsonaro said.
Bolsonaro also released an official statement in both Portuguese and English in which he vaguely accused “those in power” of wanting to lock him in prison for the rest of his life at a time when Brazil is facing one of its greatest economic and democratic crises in its history.
“This is the same authoritarian playbook we’ve seen in Venezuela, where courts were weaponized to decide elections before a single vote was cast,” Bolsonaro said. “The Brazilian people are being robbed of their right to choose their leader, and no country can call itself a democracy when its most popular candidate is barred from the ballot through judicial maneuvers.”
Bolsonaro declared, “everyone knows that if I were allowed to run, I would win,” and claimed his opponents were silencing the opposition and “spending enormous resources to ensure I never appear on a ballot again.”
“Brazil deserves true democracy – where leaders are chosen by the people at the ballot box, not eliminated in a courtroom. The future of our nation depends on it,” Bolsonaro concluded.
Radical Leftist President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, who is currently touring Japan and Vietnam, said Bolsonaro should “instead of crying, come to terms” with having become a defendant in the upcoming trial in remarks given to reporters during a joint press conference in Tokyo with Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba.
“It would be presumptuous of me to make any prediction about the decision of the Brazilian Supreme Court. I think that, what is correct, is that the Supreme Court is basing its decision on the case file, after months and months of investigation, very well done by the Federal Police, very well done by the Public Prosecutor’s Office and with a lot of accusations from important people who are accusing what tried to happen in Brazil,” Lula said.
“It’s not the man Bolsonaro who is on trial, it’s a coup d’état that is on trial. It is the conduct of this citizen that is being judged,” he continued. “So, I think that if he is guilty, he has to be satisfied with the punishment, and that goes for all 213 million inhabitants. So, instead of crying, come to reality and know that you committed an act against the sovereignty of the country.”
Prior to being elected for a third term in power, Lula himself was convicted multiple times of using his previous terms as president for personal enrichment. The STF overturned those convictions on jurisdictional grounds but did not refute the evidence against Lula of corruption.
Christian K. Caruzo is a Venezuelan writer and documents life under socialism. You can follow him on Twitter here.
