Accused on January 8th, Bolsonaro's nephew flees to Argentina and requests asylum from Milei.
Indicted in the Supreme Federal Court for his participation in the January 8th events, Léo Índio alleges political persecution and attempts to avoid trial in Brazil.
247 - Leonardo Rodrigues de Jesus, known as Léo Índio, who is a defendant in the Supreme Federal Court (STF) for his involvement in the coup attempts of January 8, 2023, left Brazil more than three weeks ago and is currently in Argentina, where he is attempting to obtain political asylum. This information was published in Guilherme Amado's column in [publication name - missing from original text]. PlateauBRand reveals yet another chapter in the escape of those under investigation linked to Jair Bolsonaro (PL).
Calling himself “Léo Bolsonaro,” the nephew of the former president is attempting to protect himself under the pretext of “political persecution,” requesting asylum from the government of the far-right Javier Milei, an international ally of Jair Bolsonaro. The asylum request is still under evaluation by the Argentine administration.
On February 28th, the First Panel of the Supreme Federal Court (STF) unanimously accepted the indictment filed by the Attorney General's Office (PGR) against Léo Índio. He is now formally facing charges for participating in the anti-democratic acts that culminated in the invasion and destruction of the Three Powers headquarters in Brasília. According to the PGR, Léo Índio was present in the Praça dos Três Poderes (Three Powers Square) during the attacks, encouraged the demonstrators to remain there, and disseminated content supporting the attempted coup on social media.
The indictment accuses him of serious crimes, such as attempted violent abolition of the Democratic Rule of Law, coup d'état, aggravated damage, and deterioration of listed public property.
Despite the evidence and the seriousness of the accusations, Léo Índio himself tries to minimize his responsibility, claiming that he came under the scrutiny of the Justice system simply for taking a photo in the Praça dos Três Poderes (Three Powers Square) during the attack.
In October 2024, Léo Índio was elected alternate city councilor in Cascavel, Paraná, reinforcing his political activity within the Bolsonaro orbit. His attempt to seek refuge in Argentina comes at a time when other Bolsonaro allies are also facing investigations or have already been indicted for involvement in coup attempts.
Data from the Argentine government's National Commission for Refugees (Conare) indicates that, between January and October 2024, at least 181 Brazilians requested refuge in the neighboring country, in many cases citing political motivations.
