Brazilian police arrest 5 officers in alleged 2022 coup plot to kill
President Lula, others
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 [November 20, 2024]
By GABRIELA SÁ PESSOA
SAO PAULO (AP) — Brazil ’s federal police arrested Tuesday five officers
accused of plotting a coup that included plans to overthrow the
government following the 2022 elections and kill then-President-elect
Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, authorities said.
The five also planned to kill Lula's running mate, Geraldo Alckmin, and
Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes. The arrested included four
special operations military personnel, one of whom is a retired
brigadier general, and a federal police officer.
The police said they also carried out three search warrants along with
other measures, including seizing the suspects' passports and preventing
them from contacting others. It was not clear when charges would be
officially raised against the five suspects.
“The objective was to prevent the inauguration of the legitimately
elected government and undermine the free exercise of democracy and the
authority of Brazil’s judiciary,” de Moraes, who authorized the arrests,
said of the plot in his order.
“These actions, peaking between November and December 2022, were part of
a broader plan to carry out a coup d’état,” he added.
Lula returned as Brazil’s president for a third, non-consecutive term
after narrowly defeating far-right incumbent Jair Bolsonaro in October
2022. Bolsonaro, who frequently cast doubt on the election results
without providing evidence and never conceded, left for the United
States days before Lula’s January 2023 inauguration.
In the aftermath of the elections, die-hard Bolsonaro supporters staged
nationwide protests challenging the results, closing highways and
camping outside military installations. That culminated in a Jan. 8,
2023 uprising, when thousands of demonstrators stormed government
buildings in the capital of Brasilia a week after Lula’s inauguration,
seeking to oust him from power.
Retired Brig. Gen. Mário Fernandes, one of the officers arrested
Tuesday, played a key role in linking these pro-Bolsonaro protest camps
to Bolsonaro's Cabinet, according to details of the investigation that
were included in the judge’s order and that were seen by The Associated
Press.
Fernandes served as interim general secretary in Bolsonaro’s Cabinet
from October 2020 until the end of his term. Police said they found
evidence that he outlined a plan to kill de Moraes, Lula and Alckmin and
visited the protest camps outside military installations, including at
the army headquarters in Brasilia. According to the police, there's
evidence that Fernandes gave instructions and financial support to the
protesters.
Fernandes' plan, according to the document, also considered different
scenarios — such as using explosives or poison at an official event — to
assassinate the judge.
Bolsonaro had long railed against the Supreme Court, focusing his ire on
de Moraes. The former president's supporters consider de Moraes their
chief enemy.
The judge led a five-year probe into fake news and threats against
Supreme Court justices, which has led to the ban of some far-right
allies and supporters from social media and even some prison terms.
De Moraes also presided over the nation’s top electoral court when it
ruled Bolsonaro ineligible for office until 2030, finding that he had
abused his power and cast unfounded doubts on the validity of the 2022
election result.
Bolsonaro is also being investigated for a slew of potential crimes,
including whether he was involved in inciting the capital uprising to
oust his successor.
Fernandes’ plan also described a scenario of poisoning Lula. The federal
police officer arrested Tuesday, Wladimir Matos Soares, allegedly
provided the other military coup plotters with information about Lula’s
security.
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Brazil's former President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, who is running
for reelection, smiles during a press conference in Sao Paulo,
Brazil, Oct. 23, 2022. (AP Photo/Andre Penner, File)
The document Tuesday contained no indication that any attempt to
carry out an assassination on Lula or Alckmin was put into motion.
However, investigators found messages and documents indicating that
the plotters were monitoring and following de Moraes at the time.
According to text messages analyzed by investigators, one of the
military officers arrested was involved in an operation that
officials believe was likely aimed at capturing the Supreme Court
justice. On Dec. 15, 2022, military personnel had even taken
positions near de Moraes in a parking lot, but the messages
indicated they decided to abort the plan last minute.
Sen. Flavio Bolsonaro, the former president’s son, appeared to seize
on that, saying no assassination attempt actually took place and
claimed that “as repugnant as it is to think about killing someone,
it’s not a crime.”
However, Supreme Court Justice Gilmar Mendes told local TV network
Globonews on Tuesday afternoon that the alleged actions went beyond
just plotting and that they were in the process of implementation.
A document that police previously seized from another arrested
military officer, Lt. Col. Hélio Ferreira Lima, detailed a plan to
overthrow the elected government, including orchestrating a probe
into alleged election fraud and calling for new elections with a
presidential decree backed by Congress.
Investigators had previously found another document outlining a
so-called Crisis Cabinet of 11 military personnel and headed by two
high-ranking generals from Bolsonaro's administration, who would
assume power after an attempted coup.
Police have also found evidence that some of these documents were
printed inside the presidential palace during Bolsonaro's term and
that part of the plan was discussed at the residence of his running
mate, former defense minister Gen. Braga Walter Braga Netto. Braga
Netto's lawyers told local media they would wait to review the
investigation before making any comments.
In March, two top Brazilian military leaders told police that
Bolsonaro had presented them a plan for him to remain in power after
losing the 2022 election. However, both refused to take part in the
plan and warned Bolsonaro they would arrest him if he tried it,
according to judicial documents released earlier this year.
Lula was informed of the arrests on Tuesday morning, according to
media reports, as he was hosting the final day of the G20 summit in
Rio de Janeiro where the Brazilian leader was to meet President Joe
Biden and others. Lula made no mention of the arrests during his
opening speech on the second day Tuesday of the summit.
The army later said none of the arrested suspects were involved in
providing security for the G20 but declined further comment the
ongoing investigation.
Last Wednesday, a man set off an explosion outside the Supreme Court
in Brasilia, which de Moraes described as a consequence of frequent
far-right attacks and hate speech targeting the country’s
institutions.
Federal police are investigating the blast as terrorism, according
to the force's director, Andrei Passos Rodrigues.
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