The Brazilian Federal Police formally accused former President Jair Bolsonaro on Thursday of embezzlement for misappropriating jewelry he received while he was head of state, including luxury items gifted by the Saudi Arabian government, two police sources said.
This is the second time that police have formally charged Bolsonaro of a crime, after charges were opened against him in Marchr falsify their COVID-19 vaccination records.
The jewelry, Some of them made by the Swiss Chopard, were valued at $3.2 million and included a diamond necklace, ring, watch and earrings given to Bolsonaro and former first lady Michelle Bolsonaro by the Saudi government.
Part of the Jewels were seized by customs officials at Sao Paulo’s international airport in October 2021, when they were found in the backpack of a government aide returning from Riyadh.
Brazil: Police accusations against Jair Bolsonaro
The Police have reportedly accused Bolsonaro of money laundering, criminal association and embezzlementaccording to one of the sources, who spoke to Reuters on condition of anonymity.
Bolsonaro’s lawyer did not return calls seeking comment. His legal counsel had previously denied that the former president had committed any crimes.
His older son Flavio, who is a senator, wrote on Thursday on his account on the social media platform X that Bolsonaro was being “persecuted.”
In an investigation authorized by the minister of Supreme Federal Court, Alexandre de Moraes, Last year, police raided the homes of military officers who allegedly helped Bolsonaro sell some of the jewelry in the United States. At the time, Judge Moraes said the items had been sold and the transaction had not been declared.
The Police also accused formally on Thursday to the former Minister of Mines and Energy, Bento Albuquerque, whose assistant had returned with him from a visit to Riyadh, to Bolsonaro’s former aide-de-camp, Mauro Cid, allegedly involved in the sale of jewelry, to his lawyer, Frederick Wassef, already its spokesperson Fabio Wajngarten, according to a source.
In your X account, Wajngarten said the accusation was “arbitrary, unfair and persecutory”arguing that he instructed Bolsonaro to return the gifts to the Brazilian Court of Accounts.
For its part, Cid’s lawyer said in a statement that his client has been under a compensated collaboration agreement with Brazilian authorities, adding that the police accusation is just another phase of the investigation.
Wassef said in a statement that he only bought one watch in USA with his own money to return it to the Brazilian authorities. According to him, neither Cid nor Bolsonaro told him to buy the watch.
The G1 news website had reported earlier on Thursday that police had formally charged Bolsonaro.
Brazil’s attorney general can now choose whether to charge Bolsonaro based on police allegations. The former president could later be charged if a judge accepts these possible charges.
Source: Ambito
