BRASILIA: Brazil’s new leftist government tightened the net around suspected instigators of riots that targeted the seats of power, ordering a probe of ex-president Jair Bolsonaro and arresting his justice minister.
Thousands of Bolsonaro backers broke into the presidential palace, Congress and Supreme Court buildings in the capital Brasilia last Sunday, demanding the ouster of his successor Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva.
They smashed windows and furniture, destroying priceless works of art, and left graffiti messages calling for a military coup.
More than 2,000 alleged rioters were detained, and the authorities are tracking those suspected of having masterminded and financed the revolt that shocked Brazil and the world.
Late Friday, a Supreme Court judge gave the green light for a probe into the origins of the riots to also look at Bolsonaro, who for years had sought to cast doubt on Brazil’s internationally-hailed election system. A request to add Bolsonaro to the suspect list had come from the office of the prosecutor general (PGR), which cited a video he had posted “questioning the regularity of the 2022 presidential elections.” –Agencies
