Flávio Bolsonaro flees to USA after losing election and ignoring order to surrender passports
The senator travelled via Argentina to the United States hours after the Federal Police requested precautionary measures against him. Flávio is under investigation for corruption and money laundering.
Senator's flight: from Buenos Aires to the USA in less than 24 hours
Seven minutes after Flávio Bolsonaro's electoral defeat to Lula da Silva, the Federal Police (PF) sent a request for precautionary measures against the senator to the office of judge Alexandre de Moraes of the Supreme Federal Court. The agency pointed to a concrete risk of flight. Moraes accepted the requests without consulting the Attorney General's Office, according to information from the newspaper O Globo, which detailed the evidence contained in the police document.
Flávio Bolsonaro is under investigation in two separate proceedings. The first involves the financing of the film Dark Horse, dedicated to the life of former president Jair Bolsonaro. The second concerns an alleged multimillion-dollar scheme with lawyer Willer Tomaz. The authorities point to him as one of the alleged parties involved in corruption and money laundering.
The Tomaz case and "structures abroad"
Tomaz's situation is described by the PF as one of the risk factors. The jurist is said to have carried out a "successful evasion" and is living in the United States — allegedly in Florida — to escape criminal prosecution. It is precisely in Florida that Flávio landed on the evening of Tuesday.
The Federal Police also indicated the existence of "structures already established abroad" that would allow the "prolonged stay" of the politician in the USA, and referred to the "significant economic power" of those involved as an additional element that justified the preventive measures.
The Dark Horse money
Investigators are analysing the "true destination" of amounts transferred by Daniel Vorcaro to allegedly finance the film. The budget for the production — around 24 million dollars — is described as unprecedented for a cinematographic work in Brazil. The money is said to have been sent from Brazil to a fund managed by Paulo Calixto, immigration lawyer for Eduardo Bolsonaro, before being transferred to Go Up, the production company of the feature film.
Investigators suspect that part of these funds may have been used by Eduardo Bolsonaro to finance his life in the USA. The former deputy lost his mandate at the end of 2025 and has been without public office since then.
The ignored order and the flight
Alexandre de Moraes ordered Flávio to surrender his passports within 24 hours. The senator was notified on Monday — according to him, as he was leaving the residence of Jair Bolsonaro, who is under house arrest for attempted coup d'état.
"Moraes's decision was based on a statement by Eduardo on 23 October, which said I should leave the country if I lost the election," Flávio alleged. "I never thought about leaving the country. I am going to surrender my passports and defend myself from this aberration, which is a clear attempt to intimidate me."
The senator did not hand over the documents, which have since been cancelled by the PF. Less than 12 hours later, the Argentine portal Infobae reported that Flávio had left Brazil heading to Argentina, from where he boarded a flight to the USA. The information was initially denied by allies, who eventually confirmed the flight.
"I can even understand if Flávio left Brazil," said Rogério Marinho, leader of the Liberal Party in the Senate and coordinator of Flávio's presidential candidacy. "I don't say I agree because I was not consulted."
American visas and alleged involvement of the State Department
The politician arrived in the United States accompanied by his family. All will receive visas from the North American State Department that permit stay on American soil, according to CNN Portugal.
Allies cited by Folha de São Paulo claim that the US State Department actively participated in arranging Flávio's departure from Brazil. Donald Trump did not congratulate Lula da Silva on the electoral victory and stated, without presenting evidence, twice that the result seemed to have been fraudulent.
Electoral fraud: allegations without evidence repeat 2022 pattern
Allegations of fraud have been recurring in Brazilian politics since 2022, when Jair Bolsonaro launched a systematic campaign to discredit electronic ballot boxes. "Based on the evidence I have in my hands, which I will show shortly, I was elected in the first round but, in my view, there was fraud," stated Bolsonaro in 2020, cited by Folha de São Paulo.
That evidence has never been presented. Messages obtained from the mobile phone of Mauro Cid, Lieutenant-General and former right-hand man of the former head of state, show that allies found no signs of fraud following the 2022 vote. The results of last Sunday's election were recognised by Portugal, by the Superior Electoral Court and by the Liberal Party itself, of which the Bolsonaro family is part.
A family with a history of flights
This is not the first time a member of the Bolsonaro family or a political ally has abandoned Brazil in the face of judicial pressure. In 2024, Jair Bolsonaro took refuge in the Hungarian embassy to avoid possible detention. In the following year, he was convicted of leading an armed criminal organisation that attempted to subvert the electoral results of 2022. An asylum request to Argentina was found on his mobile phone, which was never used.
Alexandre Ramagem, also convicted in the coup d'état process, is another name that follows the same pattern. The politician was director of the Brazilian Intelligence Agency (ABIN) and led what became known as the Parallel ABIN, a structure responsible for monitoring political opponents of the far right.
Source: CNN Portugal