Eduardo Bolsonaro, son of former Brazilian president, Jea Bolsonaro, accuses Supreme Court judges of acting “like all dictators” after assets and accounts have been frozen.
Brazil’s Supreme Court Judge Alexandre des Moraes ordered the freeze on accounts and assets of Eduardo Bolsonaro, the third son of former president Jia Bolsonaro, but the former president could now be arrested for his activities on social media.
Eduardo, a Brazilian lawmaker who has worked in Washington, DC, has strengthened his support for his father’s court battle, calling it a “another arbitrary and criminal decision” by Moraz.
“Moraz relies on illegal decisions to protect himself from the consequences of his crimes. Like all dictators,” Eduardo Bolsonaro said in a post on X on Tuesday.
“If he thinks this will stop me, I’ll make it clear. I’m not threatened, I won’t be silent. I’ve prepared myself in this moment,” he said.
“This is another demonstration of abuse of power, confirming everything I’ve been criticising in Washington and in the world,” he added.
CNN Brasil first reported that a confidential court decision was issued on Saturday as part of an investigation into Eduardo Bolsonaro’s conduct in the United States.
In another court order issued Monday, Justice Moraes said attempts to oversee criminal cases accused of overturning the coup to overturn the outcome of the 2022 election, ordering Bolsonaro to wear an ankle bracelet, banning him from causing an arrest.
Brazilian news outlet G1 reported that Moraes summoned Bolsonaro’s lawyers and made clear alleged violations that allegedly violated a court order restricting the use of social media. According to G1, Moraz gave lawyers a 24-hour explanation, adding that if the defense does not properly justify Bolsonaro’s online actions, he could order an immediate arrest of the former president.
On Friday, Bolsonaro explained Moraz’s decision to ban social media use as “co-illness,” saying he intends to continue engaging with the media so that he can hear him.
Vera Chemical, a constitutional lawyer based in Sao Paulo, told Reuters he believes the former leader is now in a precarious land.
“Bolsonaro is now completely silent,” she said. “Any mistake can lead to preventative arrests.”
Bolsonaro’s tightening restrictions came after US Secretary of State Marco Rubio. Brazilian court officials, particularly Justice Moraes, have said they are “political witch hunts” against the former president. As a result, the US had revoked its travel visa for “the family of Morae and his allies in the courts, and their immediate family,” Rubio said.
Brazilian President Luis Inacio Lula said foreign interference in his country’s judiciary was “unacceptable” and was quickly labelled Washington’s decision to impose a visa ban on court officials “arbitrarily” and “basically unfounded.”
Earlier this month, US President Donald Trump threatened to impose a 50% tariff on Brazilian goods starting on August 1st.
Bolsonaro, whose right-wing policies earned him the nickname “Tropical Trump” while in power, denied that he had led an attempt to overthrow the government, but admitted he attended a conference aimed at overturning the 2022 election results.
