Eduardo Bolsonaro. Credit: Julia Mineeva / imago stock&people / Profimedia
Brazil's Supreme Court voted Friday to indict Eduardo Bolsonaro, one of the former president's sons, on charges of obstruction of justice in the coup attempt case in which his father was convicted, the Washington Post reports.
The decision was passed by a 3-to-5 majority. Technically, the vote remains open until November 25, and any of the Supreme Court justices can change their mind until then, although such a move is quite rare.
Prosecutors accuse Eduardo Bolsonaro of using violence or serious threats to interfere with a judicial proceeding.
If he is found guilty, the son of the former president of Brazil risks up to 4 years in prison.
Prosecutors say he tried to interfere in his father's trial by urging foreign governments to pressure Brazilian officials, including by threatening the country's economy.
Eduardo Bolsonaro, a parliamentarian now in self-exile in the US, claims that the accusations against him are unfounded and represent political persecution.
In September, former president Jair Bolsonaro was sentenced to more than 27 years in prison for an attempted coup after his defeat in the 2022 elections. He has been under house arrest since August.
USA, sanctions for one of the Supreme Court judges and his wife
In July, US President Donald Trump ordered a 50% tariff on goods imported from Brazil, citing in part the case of the former Brazilian president, which he described as a “witch hunt”.
The US also imposed sanctions on Alexandre de Moraes, the Supreme Court judge overseeing Bolsonaro's case, whom the Trump administration accused, through the voice of the Treasury secretary, of being “responsible for an oppressive campaign of censorship, arbitrary detentions and politicized prosecutions – including against former President Jair Bolsonaro.”
The judge's wife, Viviane Barci de Moraes, was also sanctioned, according to Politico.
The two were sanctioned under the Magnitsky Act, through which the US government sanctions those who violate human rights.
What the judge said about Eduardo Bolsonaro
De Moraes wrote that Eduardo Bolsonaro's actions posed a “serious threat” to Brazil, “by coordinating and imposing sanctions by the US government, including export tariffs on Brazil, the suspension of entry visas for several Brazilian officials, and the application of the Magnitsky Act to this court.”
Eduardo Bolsonaro admitted that he requested support from the US government for his father. In private messages obtained by police, he told his father that pressure from Trump was his only chance to avoid prison.
However, the former president's son believes he could be charged with coercion for obstructing Brazilian justice as a result of the US actions.
“The crime of coercion requires two elements: an instrument available to the alleged perpetrator + an illegal instrument. Tariffs and enforcement of the Magnitsky Act are neither at my disposal nor illegal,” Eduardo Bolsonaro said in a post on X on Friday.
