Bolsonaro indicted for alleged 2022 coup plot

Brazil’s federal police has announced the indictment of former President Jair Bolsonaro and 36 others for allegedly conspiring to stage a coup following his narrow defeat in the 2022 presidential election.

The charges, now submitted to the Supreme Court, mark a major escalation in Bolsonaro’s legal troubles, threatening to erode his political future further.

The indictment accuses Bolsonaro and his inner circle, including top military aides and political allies, of plotting to keep him in power after his loss to current President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. Among those named are former Army commander Gen. Paulo Sérgio Nogueira de Oliveira, Bolsonaro’s 2022 running mate Gen. Walter Braga Netto, and Valdemar Costa Neto, chairman of Bolsonaro’s Liberal Party.

“I am waiting for my lawyer to analyze the indictment, but I’ll fight this case,” Bolsonaro told the news site Metropoles, dismissing the investigation as “the result of creativity.”

The indictment is the latest in a string of legal challenges for Bolsonaro. He has already been barred from running for office until 2030 after being found guilty of abusing his authority to undermine confidence in Brazil’s voting system. Separate investigations have accused him of smuggling undeclared diamond jewelry and falsifying COVID-19 vaccination records. Bolsonaro denies all allegations, maintaining his innocence.

“Bolsonaro is already disqualified for the 2026 elections,” said Carlos Melo, a political science professor at Insper University in São Paulo. “If convicted, he could also face jail time. To avoid that, he must convince the Supreme Court justices he had no involvement in a plot that implicates dozens of his aides—a very tall order.”

Legal experts suggest the indictment could lead to formal charges. “This investigation has identified both the crime and its alleged author,” said Eloísa Machado de Almeida, a law professor at the Getulio Vargas Foundation. “The prosecutor-general has enough legal grounds to press charges.”

The coup allegations are part of a larger pattern of unrest in Bolsonaro’s orbit. Federal police recently arrested four military personnel and a federal officer accused of plotting to assassinate President Lula and Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes.

Last week, a man detonated a bomb outside the Supreme Court in the capital, Brasília, before taking his own life. The attack underscores the lingering volatility surrounding Bolsonaro’s defeat and his supporters’ refusal to accept the election results.

Once seen as the standard-bearer of Brazil’s right wing, Bolsonaro’s legal entanglements have undermined his leadership role. Analysts note that his indictment, combined with the disqualification from future elections, significantly diminishes his influence.

“Bolsonaro’s far-reaching legal troubles have weakened his ability to act as a political figurehead,” Melo said. Still, Bolsonaro and his supporters remain defiant. Some have drawn inspiration from the political resilience of Donald Trump, whose recent election win in the U.S. has energized Bolsonaro’s allies despite Trump’s own legal challenges.

For Bolsonaro, however, the stakes are starkly higher. Conviction on coup charges could mean not just political sidelining but potential imprisonment. As the investigation unfolds, the former president’s political survival hangs in the balance, with many questioning whether he can clear his name amid mounting evidence.

“This case is a defining moment for Brazilian democracy,” said Melo. “Bolsonaro’s fate will either affirm the rule of law or expose its limits in holding powerful figures accountable.”