The secret investigation that prompted the Federal Police operation against Bolsonaro reached the Supreme Court two days after Trump's tariff hike.
The former president was the target of search and seizure warrants this Friday and will have to wear an electronic ankle monitor.
247 - The Federal Police carried out search and seizure warrants issued by the Supreme Federal Court against Jair Bolsonaro (PL) this Friday (18). The action adds to a set of ongoing investigations, which include his participation in the attempted coup d'état after the 2022 elections. The STF also imposed a series of restrictive measures against the former president, including the use of an electronic ankle bracelet. The information is from Folha de S. Paul.
The installation of the equipment was ordered by Minister Alexandre de Moraes as part of a confidential procedure initiated at the Supreme Federal Court (STF) on July 11, two days after the President of the United States, Donald Trump, announced a 50% tariff on Brazilian products, explicitly mentioning Bolsonaro's legal situation.
According to the former president's defense, federal agents executed warrants both at his residence in Brasília and at the national headquarters of the PL party. The measures imposed include the use of an ankle monitor, a ban on accessing social media, contacting foreign diplomats and ambassadors, and even communicating with his own son, Congressman Eduardo Bolsonaro (PL-SP), who is in the United States and is under investigation by the Supreme Court.
Furthermore, Bolsonaro is subject to house arrest from 7 pm to 19 am every day, and entirely on weekends. The decision is seen as yet another defeat for the former president, who has already faced increasing political isolation since Trump imposed the tariff hikes—an initiative that provoked a reaction from conservative governors and opened fissures in Bolsonaro's base.
Even though he was mentioned by Donald Trump in the official letter informing Brazil of the 50% tariff, Bolsonaro tried to downplay his responsibility in the diplomatic crisis. A day before the new Federal Police operation, he declared that he wouldn't have "that much freedom" with the US president and, even so, publicly requested the return of his passport to try to negotiate with the Republican.
Along the same lines, he again attacked the Lula government and stated that the surcharges would not be exclusive to Brazil, ignoring the differences in tax rates imposed on other countries. He also ignored the appeals made by Eduardo Bolsonaro to the US to adopt measures against the Supreme Federal Court (STF), in a move that puts pressure on the Brazilian judiciary amidst investigations into the coup plot.
However, voter opinion seems to lean against the former president. According to a Genial/Quaest poll released this week, 72% of Brazilians say Donald Trump was wrong to impose tariffs on Brazilian products because of the legal proceedings against Bolsonaro. Meanwhile, 53% consider President Lula's response to announcing retaliatory trade measures to be correct.
The new offensive by the Federal Police is not the first faced by Bolsonaro. In February 2024, he was one of the targets of an operation that targeted military personnel and former ministers involved in orchestrating the coup. On that occasion, his passport was seized.
During his term, Bolsonaro orchestrated systematic attacks on institutions, the Supreme Federal Court (STF), and the electoral system, promoting disinformation, questioning the voting process, and encouraging anti-democratic acts, even after his defeat at the polls. He even admitted to discussing with military personnel and advisors the possibility of intervening in the Superior Electoral Court (TSE) to annul the results of the 2022 election.
Defendant in the Supreme Federal Court (STF) on charges of leading a criminal organization with coup-plotting aims, the former president was declared ineligible to run for office until at least 2030. If convicted on charges of attempted coup d'état, violent abolition of the democratic rule of law, criminal organization, aggravated damage and deterioration of listed heritage, Bolsonaro could face more than 40 years in prison.
