Flavio Bolsonaro from the Liberal Party (PL)
Brazilian Senator Flávio Bolsonaro has been ordered to surrender his passports within 24 hours and barred from leaving the country. The order comes after his dramatic defeat to President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva in Sunday’s presidential runoff.Supreme Federal Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes issued the confidential ruling, which also prohibits Bolsonaro from contacting lawyer Willer Tomaz, who is being investigated alongside the senator in a suspected money-laundering case, Brazil’s public news agency Agência Brasil reported.Bolsonaro confirmed the passport order in a video posted on social media on Monday, saying he had been served with the notice after visiting his father, former president Jair Bolsonaro, who is under house arrest in Brasília.“I was ordered right on the street to hand over my passports, and I'm also prohibited from leaving the country,” Bolsonaro said in a social media video.He added that the decision was based on remarks made by his brother, Eduardo Bolsonaro, who reportedly told a podcast last Friday that Flávio should leave Brazil if he lost the election.“I never said that,” Flávio Bolsonaro said, denying that he intended to flee the country.
The ruling cancels all his passports, including the diplomatic passport he holds as a senator. It also forms part of a Federal Police investigation into suspected money laundering and illegal foreign exchange transactions involving Tomaz, a lawyer linked to betting companies under scrutiny.Brazil’s Supreme Federal Court and Federal Police did not immediately respond to requests for comment, according to reports.The development comes amid political uncertainty following Lula’s victory in the runoff. The official tally released by the Superior Electoral Court showed Lula winning 51.79 per cent of valid votes, against 48.21 per cent for Bolsonaro.The senator initially challenged the result, calling for the election to be annulled over an extension of voting hours intended to address disruptions caused by public transport stoppages and heavy rain.
The extension was ordered to help eligible voters reach polling stations.“It is impossible” to recognise the results, Bolsonaro said, alleging unequal treatment of voters. His legal team had indicated that it would challenge the outcome, although the legal basis for annulment remained unclear.On Monday night, Bolsonaro’s Liberal Party acknowledged the result in a statement, saying: “We recognise the presidential result proclaimed by the electoral court, but believe that the questions raised need to be properly clarified through a balanced and democratic political debate.”The passport restrictions add to the legal challenges facing Bolsonaro, who is also under investigation in a separate case concerning money allegedly sought for a biopic about his father. His Senate term is due to end early next year, potentially removing the special jurisdiction associated with his office.