The Brazilian Federal Police on Wednesday asked the Federal Supreme Court (STF) for a further extension, for another 30 days, of investigations into the alleged interference of the President, Jair Bolsonaro, in the police body.
The extension must be decided by the rapporteur of the case in the STF, Judge Celso de Mello, who is on leave for health reasons. The license is scheduled to expire on September 11.
The testimony of Jair Bolsonaro in the investigation is one of the pending steps, and which has already been requested by the Federal Police.
At issue is an inquiry opened in April by the STF, at the request of the Attorney General of the Brazilian Republic, Augusto Aras, after former Minister of Justice Sergio Moro accused Bolsonaro of “political interference in the Federal Police”, following the resignation of the former head of that institution Maurício Valeixo.
At the time, Moro stated that Bolsonaro dismissed the leadership of the Federal Police because he intended to have access to judicial investigations, some of which involved his children or allies.
“The President told me, more than once, expressly, that he wanted to have a person from his personal contact [to whom] he could call, [from whom] he could collect information, [with whom] he could collect intelligence reports . Be the director [of the Federal Police], be a superintendent ”, declared Moro, when he resigned in late April.
In early May, the attorney general of Brazil asked for the hearing of ministers, a deputy, and delegates, as well as the registration of government meetings, to investigate Moro’s accusations.
Now, the Federal Police considers it necessary to also listen to Jair Bolsonaro, the main target in the investigation.
The Federal Police is an autonomous body, subordinated to the Ministry of Justice, although the director is appointed by the President of the Republic.
