Police in Brazil raided the home and political headquarters of Jair Bolsonaro early Friday, searching the properties and ordering the former president to wear an electronic ankle tag.
The right-winger and ally of US President Donald Trump was also barred from speaking to foreign officials or approaching embassies, and banned from social media, under orders of Brazil’s Supreme Court.
The restrictions were motivated by concerns that Bolsonaro would flee the country, amid his trial over an alleged plot to overturn the results of the 2022 presidential election, which he lost to President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. Bolsonaro has denied wrongdoing.
Speaking outside the police station Friday, Bolsonaro called the ankle tag a “supreme humiliation” and said that he “never thought of leaving Brazil.”
“The suspicions (of me leaving the country) are an exaggeration… damn it, I’m a former president of the republic – I’m 70 years old,” he said.
Bolsonaro added that police seized “about 14,000 US dollars” and claimed the money was for personal use, adding he had the receipts to prove it.
Hours after the ruling, the US State Department announced visa restrictions against Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes and an unspecified number of other court officials, accusing them of carrying out a “political witch hunt” against Bolsonaro.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio said in a statement said he had “ordered visa revocations for Moraes and his allies on the court, as well as their immediate family members effective immediately.”
Moraes made headlines last year when he banned social media platform X, during a feud with its billionaire owner – and former Trump ally – Elon Musk, over hate speech moderation and the company’s failure to name a legal representative in the country, as required by law. The platform has since been restored in the nation of 220 million people.
Friday’s raid came after Trump tried to force Lula to end the criminal trial against Bolsonaro, by threatening crippling tariffs on the country. Trump linked the tariff threat to what he described as a “witch hunt” trial against Bolsonaro.
About a week later, the US launched an investigation into “unfair” trading practices by Brazil, according to a statement by the United States Trade Representative.
Brazil’s Supreme Court on Friday accused Bolsonaro and his son Eduardo of working with the US to impose the tariffs. CNN has reached out to the US State Department for comment on this allegation.
The court documents highlighted a confidential meeting Bolsonaro had with a US State Department official, and highlighted Trump’s letter as an “offensive” and “clear threat” to Brazilian sovereignty.
In an interview with Reuters on Friday, Bolsonaro denied that anyone lobbied the US to sanction Brazilian authorities working on his case.
Source: CNN/Ejiofor Ezeifeoma