The Federal Police arrested this Saturday (14.01.2023) in Brasilia Anderson Torres, former Minister of Justice in the Government of the far-right Jair Bolsonaro, whose arrest was ordered in the framework of the investigation for the attempted coup d’état of January 8 against President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, official sources reported.
The former minister was detained by authorities at Brasilia’s international airport upon disembarking from Miami, his lawyers confirmed to the press. Torres was the security secretary of the Federal District of Brasilia when thousands of radical Bolsonaristas invaded and vandalized the headquarters of Congress, the Supreme Court and the Presidency last Sunday.
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Torres was removed from office as a result of the assault and was on vacation in the United States, where he left on January 7, five days after assuming his new role and one before the assault. He returned to Brazil a day after the current Minister of Justice, Flavio Dino, said that they would activate international cooperation mechanisms if he did not return voluntarily.
Bolsonaro in the crosshairs
Torres is under investigation for alleged “willful collusion” with those who attacked the heart of the country’s democratic institutions. The Federal Police explained in a brief statement that the detainee “will remain at the disposal of justice” and that “the investigations remain secret.”
The judge who signed the arrest warrant, Alexandre de Moraes, also authorized Bolsonaro to be included in investigations looking for the instigators and masterminds of the attack.
The Prosecutor’s Office based its request against the former president on the statements made by the far-right leader in a video published on social networks, where Bolsonaro questioned the October election result. Published on January 10, and deleted on January 11, the Prosecutor’s Office said, the video is a piece that even days after the attacks proves a connection to the facts.
Recall that on January 8, thousands of Bolsonaro supporters, dissatisfied with Lula’s victory, invaded and looted the headquarters of the Presidency, the National Congress and the Supreme Federal Court.
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