By Ricardo Brito
BRASILIA (Reuters) -Brazil’s Federal Police found proof that former hard-right President Jair Bolsonaro plotted a coup to overturn the outcome of the October 2022 election he lost to leftist challenger Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, the police investigation report said.
The 884-page final police report, which was made public on Tuesday after it was sent to the country’s top prosecutor by the Supreme Court, listed eight main pieces of evidence to back up the formal accusation against Bolsonaro for the alleged coup attempt.
The evidence included a meeting Bolsonaro called in December 2022 with the three armed forces commanders where they were presented a plan for a coup d’état and asked to join the conspiracy.
The Army and Air Force commanders refused, while the Navy commander, now retired Admiral Almir Garnier, said he was ready to back the plan, the police investigation found.
Garnier was one of the 37 people, most retired and some active duty military officers, who along with Bolsonaro were formally accused by the police for involvement in the coup plan. Prosecutor General Paulo Gonet must decided whether to indict Bolsonaro and the other alleged coup plotters.
Bolsonaro, who was formally accused for the attempted coup d’état, violent abolition of the democratic rule of law and criminal organization, has denied having committed any crime.
Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes authorized on Tuesday the lifting of the seal on the police findings.
The police report said Bolsonaro was responsible for drawing up a draft of a decree for the coup that would block Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva from taking office.
Police also found that Bolsonaro knew of a plan to assassinate President-elect Lula and Vice President-elect Geraldo Alckmin based on telephone conversations of the plotters and meetings at the presidential Alvorada residence.
(Reporting by Ricardo Brito in Brasilia; additional reporting by Lisandra Paraguassu; Writing by Anthony Boadle; Editing by Brendan O’Boyle)
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