During live stream, Brazil’s prosecutor general almost hits colleague

Brazil’s Prosecutor General Augusto Aras got into an argument with a colleague and advanced on him during a session of the National Council of the Federal Prosecution Service on Tuesday.

There was confusion among committee members who disagreed with the criteria adopted on an agenda that would be put to a vote. “I just can’t stand this mess,” Mr. Aras complained. “Your Excellency also interfered when your colleague was speaking. So if your Excellency wants respect, respect me too”, said deputy prosecutor Nísio de Freitas. “Your Excellency is not worthy of respect,” replied Mr. Aras.

An argument started, and the committee chief got up from his chair and walked quickly over to Mr. Freitas. A security guard followed him, running. The live stream of the session was then interrupted.

Mr. Freitas had already positioned himself critically against his boss. In 2020, he signed a letter with three other sub-prosecutors in which they disagreed with the way Mr. Aras dealt with Operation Car Wash. The letter stated that a “discredited, unstable, and weakened prosecution service” serves the interests of those who are outside the law.

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• #violence