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Brazil court freezes Bolsonaro son’s assets as ex-president threatened with arrest over social media use Brazil court freezes Bolsonaro son’s assets as Trump’s tariffs appear to backfire
(about 11 hours later)
Eduardo Bolsonaro condemns Alexandre de Moraes’s order, while judge directs Jair Bolsonaro’s lawyers to explain why he breached social media restrictions Eduardo Bolsonaro is suspected of using money to lobby US president on behalf of his father, Jair, who faces arrest for apparent flouting of social media ban
A Brazilian supreme court justice has ordered the freezing of the accounts and assets of former president Jair Bolsonaro’s third son, Eduardo Bolsonaro, the latter said on social media. A Brazilian supreme court judge has ordered that the bank accounts and assets of Jair Bolsonaro’s congressman son be frozen, as a political crisis – pitting Brazil’s far-right former president and Donald Trump against the current administration – intensified.
Eduardo, a Brazilian congressman who has been in Washington to drum up support for his father, said on X on Monday the decision was “another arbitrary” decision by Justice Alexandre de Moraes. Justice Alexandre de Moraes – who has spearheaded a series of supreme court investigations into Bolsonaro – targeted the finances of Eduardo Bolsonaro, the ex-president’s third son, as a result of police suspicions that money being sent to him by his father was bankrolling his efforts to lobby the Trump administration to help Bolsonaro avoid punishment for an alleged coup attempt after the 2022 election.
CNN Brasil reported that Moraes’s confidential decision was issued on Saturday as part of an investigation into Eduardo Bolsonaro’s conduct in the US. Eduardo Bolsonaro, a 41-year-old politician with ties to Steve Bannon and Trump’s Maga movement, has lived in the US since February after going into self-imposed exile. He has spent recent weeks boasting on social media about his apparent success in convincing the White House to pile pressure on Brazil’s supreme court and leftwing president, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, over his father’s plight.
Donald Trump has tied the imposition of steep tariffs on Brazilian goods to what the US president calls a “witch-hunt” against the former Brazilian president. Trump’s most significant move came on 9 July, when the US president announced plans to slap 50% tariffs on Brazilian imports because of the supposed “witch hunt” against Bolsonaro, who faces decades in jail for allegedly trying to seize power after being defeated by Lula in 2022.
A decision showed on Monday evening that Moraes – who oversees the case in which Bolsonaro is accused of plotting a coup – also threatened to order Bolsonaro’s arrest unless his lawyers explained within 24 hours why he breached restrictions on his use of social media. Lula hit back, calling Trump’s move “unacceptable blackmail” and criticising the Brazilian “traitors” for undermining their country’s interests by supporting the tariffs. “They don’t care about our country’s economy or the harm this will do to our people,” Lula said, in an unmistakable reference to the Bolsonaros.
Bolsonaro’s lawyers did not immediately respond to a request for comment outside normal business hours. On Friday, the secretary of state, Marco Rubio, stripped eight of Brazil’s 11 supreme court judges of their US visas in the latest phase of Trump’s attempt to force the supreme court to drop the coup case against Bolsonaro. Rubio’s move came hours after federal police raided Bolsonaro’s mansion in the capital, Brasília, fitted him with an electronic ankle tag to stop him absconding, and banned him from using social media or communicating with scores of people, including his son, Eduardo, and foreign diplomats.
Moraes on Friday ordered Bolsonaro to wear an ankle bracelet and banned him from using social media, among other measures – which were later upheld by a court panel – over allegations he courted Trump’s interference. On Monday, Eduardo Bolsonaro condemned Moraes’s “arbitrary” decision to freeze his accounts. “If he thinks this will make me stop, let me be clear: I will not be intimidated and I will not be silenced. I’ve prepared myself for this moment,” he tweeted.
Bolsonaro described Moraes’ decision to prohibit his social media use as “cowardice”, telling Reuters he intended to continue engaging with the press to ensure his voice was heard. The drama looks set to escalate further in the coming days and weeks as the supreme court prepares to announce its verdict in the trial investigating whether Bolsonaro masterminded a plot to seize power through a military coup. Bolsonaro – who, at 70, faces spending the rest of his life behind bars – has repeatedly denied the charges.
On Monday, Moraes said Bolsonaro breached the supreme court order when speaking with journalists earlier in the day, after a meeting with allies in the Brazilian Congress. Bolsonaro supporters have announced street protests for 3 August in an attempt to re-energise their faltering movement, and claim the Trump administration is preparing to announce further sanctions targeting Brazilian authorities. “From here in the US, I’m not speaking in anyone’s name but I can guarantee you this – there will be no retreat,” Eduardo Bolsonaro told CNN Brasil on Friday.
The moment – which marked the first time Bolsonaro publicly showed his ankle bracelet – came hours after Moraes issued a clarification of Friday’s ruling, which stated that Bolsonaro’s use of social media included use through third parties. On Monday night, Moraes warned that Jair Bolsonaro could face arrest if his lawyers failed to explain why – in apparent violation of his social media ban – Bolsonaro had made a high-profile public appearance earlier that day at congress, which was widely broadcast on social media.
Moraes, in his decision, attached screenshots of several posts on social media – including on news outlets – that showed Bolsonaro “displaying the electronic monitoring device, delivering a speech to be displayed on digital platforms”. During that appearance the ex-president showed reporters the monitoring tag on his left ankle and called his treatment “cowardice”. “I didn’t kill anyone!” Bolsonaro shouted, adding: “God’s law is what matters to me.”
The US secretary of state, Marco Rubio, last week called Moraes’ court orders a “political witch-hunt”, responding on Friday with immediate visa revocations for “Moraes and his allies on the court, as well as their immediate family members.“ If Trump’s interventions were intended to benefit Bolsonaro, so far they appear to have backfired. Lula has enjoyed a bounce in the polls, with many Brazilians outraged at Trump’s politically motivated attack on their economy. Those likely to be worst affected by the tariffs – set to come into force on 1 August – include agribusiness companies that have long been loyal to Bolsonaro.
The court’s crackdown on Bolsonaro adds to evidence that Trump’s tactics are backfiring in Brazil, compounding trouble for his ideological ally and rallying public support behind the defiant leftist government.
Hours before summoning Bolsonaro’s lawyers, Moraes had issued a ruling that raised questions about whether the rightwing leader was allowed to talk to journalists.
“Obviously, the broadcasting, re-broadcasting or dissemination of audio, video or transcripts of interviews on any third-party social media platform is prohibited,” the judge said in the clarification of Friday’s ruling.
The measure sparked debate in Brazil regarding the ruling’s range.
Bolsonaro on Monday cancelled an interview with a news outlet that would have been broadcast live on social media.
The supreme court declined to comment or elaborate on the specifics of that decision.
A spokesperson for Bolsonaro also declined to comment, but the former president has always denied any wrongdoing.