Brazilian former congressman and Bolsonaro ally attacks police with guns and grenades as they try to arrest him at his home
- Jefferson barricaded himself in his home and fired at police trying to arrest him
- Mr Bolsonaro falsely claimed that there were no photos of the two men together
- The incident comes just days before Brazilians vote in the presidential elections
A former Brazilian congressman with ties to President Jair Bolsonaro threw grenades at police officers who were trying to arrest him at his home.
Roberto Jefferson, a former lawmaker and an ally of President Jair Bolsonaro, also fired a rifle at police in the attempt to arrest him, wounding two officers in the rural municipality Comendador Levy Gasparian, in Rio de Janeiro state on Sunday.
Jefferson said in a video message sent to supporters on WhatsApp that he refused to surrender, though by early evening he was in custody.
Mr Bolsonaro immediately condemned the armed attack by Roberto Jefferson and distanced himself from the former legislator, calling him a ‘bandit’.
Roberto Jefferson, pictured with Mr Bolsonaro, shot and threw grenades at police as they tried to arrest him on Sunday.
Roberto Jefferson is a former congressman in Brazil’s lower chamber.
The Federal Supreme Court (STF) had ordered Jefferson to be taken back into custody after he broke the terms of his house arrest by issuing online attacks against Supreme Court Justice Carmen Lucia, calling her a ‘witch’ and a ‘prostitute.’
Jefferson barricaded himself in his home, located in Levy Gasaparian in Rio de Janeiro state, for eight hours.
He said in a video posted on social media that he had fired a gun, but that he did not intend to injure the officers.
Jefferson in January received permission to serve preventative arrest under house arrest, provided he complies with certain conditions.
Justice Alexandre de Moraes said in a decision published on Sunday that Jefferson has repeatedly violated those terms – most recently by using social media to compare one female justice to a prostitute – and ordered he be returned to prison.
Two police officers were injured in the incident as Jefferson fired and threw grenades at them.
Supporters of Jefferson and Mr Bolsonaro gathered outside the former congressman’s home in Levy Gasparian, Rio de Janeiro state on Sunday evening.
‘I didn’t shoot anyone to hit them. No one. I shot their car and near them. There were four of them, they ran, I said, ‘Get out, because I’m going get you’,’ Jefferson said in the video. ‘I’m setting my example, I’m leaving my seed planted: resist oppression, resist tyranny. God bless Brazil.’
The Federal Police indicated that Jefferson had resisted arrest using ‘firearms and explosives,’ but was finally taken into custody in the evening, ‘after an intense negotiation.’
Two policemen ‘were wounded by shrapnel from a grenade thrown’ by the ex-legislator, but received medical attention and are in good condition, according to the Federal Police.
Later, Brazil’s federal police said in another statement that Jefferson was also arrested for attempted murder.
Mr Bolsonaro, who had earlier dispatched his justice minister to the scene, repudiated the ‘armed action’ and expressed his solidarity with the injured officers.
Police officers patrol around the former lawmaker’s house in Rio de Janeiro state.
Mr Bolsonaro, who is currently campaigning for reelection, addressed the incident involving Roberto Jefferson at a press conference on Sunday.
‘Whoever shoots at the Federal Police is a bandit,’ he said during a television interview on Sunday night, while insisting he had no ties with Jefferson, who in 2020 said the president was his ‘personal friend.’
Mr Bolsonaro had claimed on social media that he had not taken photos with Jefferson, but several images were later published showing the two together since he became president in 2019.
Mr Bolsonaro condemned the statements made by Jefferson against the Supreme Court justice, but also repudiated the STF investigations of Jefferson, which he believes are being carried out ‘without any support in the Constitution.’
The Brazilian president’s base had mixed reactions, with some on social media hailing Jefferson as a hero for standing up to the top court.
Dozens flocked to his house to show support as he remained holed up inside.
The ammunition fired by Jefferson cracked the police car windshield as two officers were injured on Sunday evening.
A crowd came out in support of Roberto Jefferson as he barricaded himself in his house
The armed standoff comes only a week before the presidential election’s second round, which pits Bolsonaro against leftist former president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva.
Former president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, who is campaigning to return to his former job, told reporters in Sao Paulo that Jefferson ‘does not have adequate behaviour. It is not normal behaviour’.
Earlier this year, the Supreme Court convicted lawmaker Daniel Silveira for inciting physical attacks on the court’s justices as well as other authorities. Mr Bolsonaro quickly issued a pardon for Mr Silveira, who appeared beside the president after he cast his vote in the election’s first round on October 2.
The runoff vote between Mr Bolsonaro and Mr da Silva is set for October 30
‘Brazil is terrified watching events that, this Sunday, reach the peak of the absurd,’ Arthur Lira, the president of Congress’ Lower House and a Mr Bolsonaro ally, wrote on Twitter. ‘We will not tolerate setbacks or attacks against our democracy.’
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