According to the Agencia Brasil, the attempt to escape by plane to El Salvador by the former head of the Brazilian highway police Silvinei Vasques culminated in his arrest on Paraguayan territory. This latest episode intensified the Federal Court’s response in light of the repeated actions of those seeking to evade justice for their involvement in the conspiracy aimed at keeping Jair Bolsonaro in power after the 2022 elections. The most important news in this context is the decision of Judge Alexandre de Moraes, who imposed house arrest on ten people convicted in this case as a measure to prevent new escape attempts.
According to Agencia Brasil, the decision of the Supreme Court of Brazil adopted this Saturday concerns a group that includes seven soldiers, a federal police delegate, the president of the Voto Legal Institute – the company in charge of auditing the elections on behalf of the Bolsonaro government – identified as Carlos Cesar Moretzsohn Rocha, and Filipe Martins, Bolsonaro’s former adviser on international affairs. All of them, according to the media, must remain under surveillance in their homes, in addition to the ban on carrying firearms, the mandatory use of electronic monitoring via ankle bracelets, the immediate issuance of passports and the restriction of any contact between those involved. In addition, the court order prohibits the defendant from accessing social networks.
Judge De Moraes justified the court decision with recent events which, as he detailed, showed the existence of plans to facilitate the escape of the convicts outside Brazil, in some cases in collaboration with third parties. “The modus operandi of the criminal organization convicted by the Federal Court points to the possibility of planning and carrying out escape attempts outside the national territory, as the defendant Alexandre Ramagem did, also with the help of third parties,” De Moraes said, according to Agencia Brasil.
In this sense, Agencia Brasil also reported that Alexandre Ramagem, former director of the Brazilian Secret Service and sentenced to 16 years in prison, is in the United States with the apparent aim of avoiding the sentence imposed. The situation corresponds to the pattern described by the judge, that the leaders and members of the organization are looking for international alternatives to avoid serving a sentence on Brazilian territory. Cases like that of Silvinei Vasques, who violated house arrest after breaking his electronic ankle bracelet and was arrested in Paraguay, reinforce the Supreme Court’s argument about the need to tighten restrictions.
Agencia Brasil explained that the Supreme Court’s response was in response to a series of violations of the precautionary measures taken during the investigation and trial of those involved in the coup attempt. Former President Jair Bolsonaro himself was accused of tampering with his surveillance device while under house arrest, heightening the judicial authority’s concerns about the risk of absconding and violating imposed measures.
At the institutional level, the Supreme Court’s decision provides concrete guidance on international police cooperation to prevent possible escapes, particularly to countries where convicts seek refuge to avoid prison. The case of Silvinei Vasques, who was arrested while he was already in Paraguay and preparing to fly to El Salvador, showed how quickly Bolsonaro’s inner circle puts plans into action to circumvent criminal activity, Agencia Brasil reported.
The court ruling, which imposes strict surveillance and movement restrictions on those convicted of the coup attempt, is not limited to those who have already attempted to escape, but extends to a broader group identified by investigators as potentially willing to violate the imposed measures. Among the requirements established by the Supreme Court, the prohibition of any type of communication or coordination between the defendants stands out, considered a crucial element to prevent the repetition of previous escape attempts.
The media outlet Agencia Brasil also noted that the imposition of house arrest and the tightening of conditions for electronic surveillance mark a new chapter in the Brazilian judiciary’s efforts to enforce the sentences imposed following the failure of the operation to keep Jair Bolsonaro in the executive branch after the 2022 elections. The Supreme Court believes that failure to comply with the restrictions represents not only a challenge to the judicial authority, but also a threat to due process and the ability of the state to implement its decisions in cases of major importance.
Meanwhile, Brazil’s federal police and security forces from neighboring countries are coordinating efforts to locate and arrest those seeking to leave the country. The whereabouts of Silvinei Vasques in Paraguay and the reports of Ramagem’s stay in the United States are examples of this international cooperation aimed at ensuring the effectiveness of the judicial measures imposed in Brazil.
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