Passport cancelled for Flávio Bolsonaro following suspected flight bid from Argentina
Brazil's Federal Police are investigating whether senator Flávio Bolsonaro attempted to flee to the United States aboard a private jet departing from Buenos Aires. His diplomatic and regular passports were cancelled on Tuesday.
Aircraft held in Puerto Iguazú as Brazil cancels Flávio Bolsonaro's passports
Brazil's Federal Police opened an investigation to determine whether senator Flávio Bolsonaro, of the Liberal Party, attempted to leave the country aboard a Gulfstream G400 aircraft with registration LV-JQW, belonging to Argentine company Baires Fly S.A., according to noticiasargentinas.com. The aircraft departed from Buenos Aires Aeroparque on Monday at 22:15 and landed at 23:45 in Puerto Iguazú, a city bordering Brazil, with a planned destination of the United States.
In parallel, Brazilian authorities cancelled the senator's passports on Tuesday—both the diplomatic and regular ones—after verifying that he had not handed them over within the timeframe ordered by the courts, according to a police source who confirmed this to the Argentine agency.
Border airport controls
Airport sources told noticiasargentinas.com that the flight was scheduled to depart in the early morning hours with four passengers, two pilots, and a cabin crew member. However, difficulties arose with the identification of the travellers, so authorities requested additional information before authorising departure. The initial flight plan was cancelled and the aircraft was held in a sector of Puerto Iguazú airfield, pending resolution, after which it could either continue to the United States or return to Buenos Aires.
Suspicions that one of the passengers was Flávio Bolsonaro—who is subject to a departure ban from the country—arose from the investigation of Brazil's Federal Police itself and were reported by newspaper O Globo.
Investigation into money laundering and currency evasion
According to O Globo, the Federal Police are investigating Bolsonaro for alleged money laundering and currency evasion, linking him to lawyer Willer Tomaz through shared accounts and travel records. The case is being handled by judge André Mendonça and encompasses the alleged participation of the senator in obtaining funds—derived from former banker Daniel Vorcaro—to finance a biographical film about his father, former president Jair Bolsonaro.
It was magistrate Alexandre de Moraes who ordered the retention of the passports and the departure ban for the senator, in the context of these investigations. The measure was taken following the legislator's defeat in the presidential elections against Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.
Whereabouts unknown; no record of entry to Argentina
As of the closing of this report, the exact whereabouts of Flávio Bolsonaro were unknown. Police sources confirmed that there is no "formal record" of him having crossed the border and left Brazil. At the same time, other sources told noticiasargentinas.com that there is also no record of the senator entering Argentine territory through any of the border crossings linking both countries.
The same sources suggested that it would not be unreasonable to suppose that Bolsonaro had intended to board that flight to the United States, but that, warned of police surveillance, he would have refrained from crossing the border given the possibility of being detained for "attempted flight".
Denials from the senator's circle
The general coordinator of Bolsonaro's presidential campaign, senator Rogério Marinho (PL-RN), denied that the political leader had left the country. "That did not happen," Marinho declared to Metrópoles, also denying at this time that his passport had been withdrawn.
Flávio Bolsonaro himself had stated in recent hours his intention to present himself before judge Alexandre de Moraes, hand over his passport, and defend himself against what he described as "an outrage" intended to "intimidate me".
Source: Google News AR — Crime