Flavio Bolsonaro Arrives in US After Brazil Cancels His Passports

Defeated presidential candidate Flavio Bolsonaro has arrived in the United States, according to multiple sources, shortly after Brazilian authorities moved to cancel his passports. The right-wing senator left his home country following a Supreme Court order to surrender his travel documents as part of an active probe into alleged money laundering activities. To date, Bolsonaro has not been formally charged and continues to deny any wrongdoing. Former President Jair Bolsonaro, who was convicted of plotting a coup and is under house arrest, bolsonaro was already under investigation for alleged corruption over the financing of a film about his father.

The cancellation of his passports occurred on Tuesday, triggered by his failure to meet a court-mandated deadline to submit them. This development fueled widespread speculation regarding his potential departure from Brazil. Sources said Brasil and Mundo that Bolsonaro has already met with his younger brother, Eduardo, in Florida, although the specific details of his transit route remain unclear.

His arrival in the US followed confirmation from a senior American official that the State Department would issue visas to Bolsonaro and his family, granting them entry. Neither Flavio nor Eduardo could be reached for immediate comment. Officials in the US and the relevant embassies have been contacted for further clarification regarding the senator’s status.

On Monday, Brazil’s Supreme Court had ordered the senator to hand over his passports to police within 24 hours.

At that time, the 45-year-old politician publicly insisted he had no intention of leaving Brazil, stating he planned to remain in the country to spearhead the opposition against newly elected President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva. Following his failure to meet the deadline, his legal representatives said Brasil that they were “completely in the dark” regarding his location, noting they had no information about his movements. And we still have no information about what happened,” one lawyer said, we knew nothing about this.

Federal officers had previously monitored border crossings, particularly in search of potential travel to neighboring Argentina. However, authorities in Argentina confirmed to the media that there was no record of the senator entering their country at any point. Bolsonaro, who has not made a public statement since Monday afternoon, has not formally conceded the election and has instead called for the results to be annulled. According to federal officers checked border crossings to establish if Bolsonaro may have travelled to neighbouring Argentina, a police source, Brasil.

Beyond the current money laundering investigation, which alleges links to a lawyer accused of a $1bn fraud scheme, the senator faces additional legal pressure. Police recently discovered that Bolsonaro had access to the bank accounts of a company belonging to the same lawyer. The senator has dismissed the passport confiscation as a targeted effort to intimidate him.

Simultaneously, the Supreme Court has directed police to launch an inquiry into his recent electoral campaign over potential foreign funding irregularities. This series of legal challenges comes after a stinging defeat in Sunday’s presidential run-off against Lula, an outcome contrary to initial expectations.

While his brother Eduardo lives in Texas, he was observed in Miami on Sunday casting his vote and hosting an election watch party. It remains unknown who accompanied Flavio Bolsonaro on his trip or whether he intends to reside permanently in the United States.