A Brazilian Supreme Federal Court judge on Monday ordered a probe into accusations by former Brazilian minister of justice and public security Sergio Moro that Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro sought to “interfere” with police investigations.
Judge Celso de Mello gave the federal police 60 days to question Moro about his explosive allegations against the president.
The findings, which would be handed over to the attorney general, could result in either a request for a political trial against Bolsonaro or an indictment against Moro for false testimony.
Photo: AFP
The alleged crimes seem to have “an intimate connection with the exercise of the presidential mandate,” De Mello said, thus allowing for an investigation of the leader.
Moro, a former anti-corruption judge, on Friday last week resigned after clashing with Bolsonaro over the dismissal of the federal police chief, accusing the president of political interference.
De Mello listed seven accusations against Bolsonaro, including obstruction of justice.
Should the investigation confirm the allegations, it would be up to the Brazilian Chamber of Deputies to initiate impeachment proceedings against Bolsonaro.
In 2017, the prosecutor-general’s office asked to open two investigations against then-Brazilian president Michel Temer, and in both cases the requests were rejected by the lower chamber.
The tensions come at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Bolsonaro has repeatedly downplayed the danger of the novel coronavirus and earlier this month fired former Brazilian minister of health Luiz Henrique Mandetta, who supported isolation as a tool to contain the spread of the pandemic.
A poll published on Monday night showed divided opinions about Bolsonaro’s future, with 45 percent of respondents saying that the Brazilian National Congress should open impeachment proceedings against him.
In comparison, 48 percent thought that Bolsonaro should not be impeached, according to the Datafolha poll, which was published in Folha de S. Paulo.
Behind the scenes, changing the head of the federal police, an investigative body that reports to the Brazilian Ministry of Justice and Public Security, has been seen as an attempt by Bolsonaro to control investigations that surround his family and political allies.
One probe, opened in March last year, is investigating false news campaigns to threaten or slander the court’s judges who opposed Bolsonaro’s projects.
Another, initiated by the attorney general last week, is investigating a demonstration outside the army headquarters in Brasilia by Bolsonaro supporters, who called for military intervention in handling the pandemic while protesting against stay-at-home orders.
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