Brazilian police have accused the country's former president Jair Bolsonaro of money laundering and criminal ties in connection with undeclared diamonds , which he received from Saudi Arabia during his tenure, a familiar source said, cited by the Associated Press and BTA.
Another source has confirmed that there are charges against Bolsonaro, without specifying what nature. Both sources spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly.
The Brazilian Supreme Court has not yet received the police report with the charges. When that happens, the country's attorney general, Paulo Gonnet, will study the document and decide whether to bring formal charges.
Bolsonaro and his lawyers deny any wrongdoing in the case, as well as the multiple investigations against the former president. These include ordering an associate to manipulate health records to falsify his COVID-19 vaccination certificate, for which Bolsonaro already faces charges, as well as involvement in inciting a riot in the capital of Brazil on January 8, 2023, in an attempt to ousting his successor to the presidency.
Last year, federal police accused Bolsonaro of trying to illegally transport diamond jewelry allegedly worth $3 million and sell two luxury watches.
In August, according to police, Bolsonaro received almost $70,000 in cash from the sale of two luxury watches he received as gifts from Saudi Arabia. Brazil requires its citizens arriving by plane from abroad to declare goods worth more than $1,000, paying a 50 percent tax on the value above that amount.
The jewels would be exempt from the tax if they were a gift from Saudi Arabia to Brazil, but in that case Bolsonaro would not be allowed to keep them, and they should have been added to the presidential collection.
The investigation has established that one of Bolsonaro's leading associates, Mauro Cid, in June 2022 sold a “Rolex” and a “Patek Philippe“ per store for a total of $68,000. They were gifted by the Saudi government in 2019. Sid later entered into a plea deal with the authorities and admitted all the facts.
Bolsonaro retains strong support among his political base. In February, about 185,000 of his supporters protested in Sao Paulo against the charges, which the former president defines as political repression.
Last year, Brazil's Supreme Electoral Court ruled that Bolsonaro had abused his presidential powers during the 2022 election, when he was running for re-election. At the center of the case was a meeting in which Bolsonaro used presidential staff, national television and the presidential palace to say through foreign ambassadors that the country's electronic voting system had been manipulated. As a result of the decision, Bolsonaro is ineligible to participate in elections until 2030