Pro-Bolsonaro lawmaker charged for holding man at gunpoint

By Cedê Silva

The Federal Prosecution Office charged far-right Congresswoman Carla Zambelli for illegally possessing a firearm. The terms of the charges are confidential, but Ms. Zambelli has publicly acknowledged them.

In late October, on the eve of the runoff presidential election, Ms. Zambelli drew a firearm and pointed it at a man in the upscale Jardins neighborhood of São Paulo (see video below). Journalist Luan Araújo, who was chased at gunpoint by Ms. Zambelli, announced his intention to press charges.

In a video published on her social media accounts soon after the incident, Ms. Zambelli said she retaliated to an attack and falsely claimed she had been thrown to the ground by one of her would-be assailants. “They used a black man to come after me. There were several of them,” she said. “They pushed me and hurt me. They called me a son of a bitch, a prostitute, told me to go fuck myself, spat on me several times.”

However, a video taken by a bystander shows the congresswoman tripping and falling without being pushed, before beginning to pursue the man with whom she and her group were arguing.

The Superior Electoral Court had banned the carrying of most private guns and ammunition during election weekend.

In a communiqué to the press, the congresswoman claimed she was legally authorized to carry a weapon by the Federal Police. The Prosecutor General’s Office says the authorization does not include the visible carrying of a firearm in a public place.

Ms. Zambelli was the second-most voted lawmaker in São Paulo last year, with 946,000 votes.

• #violence