Prosecutor-general says punishing defendants is “imperative”
Brazil’s Prosecutor-General Paulo Gonet said it is “imperative” to punish what he termed a failed attempt to disrupt the democratic order. In his oral argument in the trial that could convict former President Jair Bolsonaro and seven allies for a coup plot, he called the plan shocking and sinister.
In his view, the acts that make up the shocking and terrifying scene detailed by the charges “cannot be treated as acts of minor importance, utopian daydreaming, reckless adventures, or rash actions that will fade with time into a harmless fun fact in the irreverent history of national life,” he stated.
This morning, the prosecutor filed his accusation against former President Bolsonaro and seven former aides for attempted coup d’état and four other crimes.
In presenting his arguments to the justices of the first panel of the Supreme Court, Gonet stated that, while constitutional checks may suffice to remedy legal deviations, the trial concerns acts “that must be considered serious as long as we seek to maintain the existence of a democratic state governed by the rule of law.”
The defendants were charged by the prosecutor-general with the following crimes:
- leading or participating in an armed criminal organization;
- violently attacking the democratic rule of law;
- coup d’état;
- aggravated damage caused by violence and serious threats; and
- the destruction of listed heritage sites.
The exception is former Brazilian Intelligence Agency (ABIN) Director Alexandre Ramagem, who is serving as a federal representative and therefore benefits from the suspension of some of the charges and is only responding to the first three.
If convicted, the penalties could exceed 40 years in prison, depending on the role played by the convicted person in the coup plot.
