Bolsonaro asks Prosecutor General to investigate Supreme Court justice

Prosecutor General Augusto Aras. Photo: Fabio Pozzebom/ABr

President Jair Bolsonaro has asked the Federal Prosecution Office to investigate Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes. This request was filed mere hours after a judge denied proceeding with an almost identical criminal complaint lodged by the President with the Court on Tuesday.

Augusto Aras, the Prosecutor General, is close to Mr. Bolsonaro and has the prerogative to take the case to the Supreme Court. But the chances of him admitting the complaint are minimal.

As explained in the Brazil Daily newsletter, Mr. Bolsonaro knows that his complaints are unlikely to go anywhere — but he hopes to increase institutional tensions and foment the narrative that the judiciary is acting against him.

Justice Moraes is responsible for investigations involving the president and his family, mainly related to their role in promoting fake news on social media that attacks democratic institutions. He will also be presiding over the Superior Electoral Court during the October elections.

Mr. Bolsonaro had previously submitted an impeachment request against the judge in August 2021, which was shelved. The president alleges that the investigation against him has been dragging on for too long, has failed to present illicit facts, and harms his re-election campaign.

Amanda Audi

Amanda Audi is a journalist specializing in politics and human rights. She is the former executive director of Congresso em Foco and worked as a reporter for The Intercept Brasil, Folha de S. Paulo, O Globo, Gazeta do Povo, Poder360, among others. In 2019, she won the Comunique-se Award for best-written media reporter and won the Mulher Imprensa award for web journalism in 2020