Former Brazilian president charged with alleged coup plot

Former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro has been accused by the country's chief prosecutor of attempting a coup d'état after he was defeated in the 2022 presidential election.

The 69-year-old was handed five charges for allegedly trying to prevent his successor, President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, from taking office after a tight election race.

The charges include allegations that he planned to poison Lula and kill Supreme Court judge Alexandre de Morae.

Bolsonaro denies wrongdoing and says he is the victim of political persecution, the Telegraph reports.

The prosecutor's advice will now be reviewed by the Supreme Court. If accepted, Bolsonaro and 33 others will be formally charged and face trial.

The former president was banned from running for eight years after being accused of undermining Brazilian democracy by falsely claiming that electronic ballots used in the October 2022 poll were vulnerable to hacking and fraud.

The hard-fought election was won by an extremely narrow margin by President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva – more commonly known as Lula.

Bolsonaro never publicly admitted his defeat and left Brazil for the US, two days before Lula was sworn in as president.

On January 8, 2023, his supporters attacked government buildings in the capital, Brasilia. Parts of the buildings were looted and police arrested 1,500 of the rebels.

Three months ago, federal police published a report accusing Bolsonaro of playing a leading role in planning and organizing an attempted coup – including proposing the idea to key figures in the military – to stop Lula from taking power.

The document accusing Bolsonaro states that responsibility for acts that were harmful to the democratic order lies with a criminal organization led by Bolsonaro himself.

In practice, this means that legal proceedings have begun and Bolsonaro will likely face a trial.

One of the charges is for the crime of an "armed criminal organization," allegedly led by Bolsonaro and his vice presidential candidate Walter Braga Netto.

The alleged plot included a plan to poison Lula and kill Supreme Court judge Alexandre de Moraes, one of Bolsonaro's rivals, said Attorney General Paulo Gonet Branco.

"Joined with other individuals, including civilians and military personnel, they attempted to prevent, in a coordinated manner, the fulfillment of the result of the 2022 presidential elections," he said. /Telegraph/