On the run in , Joelton Gusmão de Oliveira was arrested this Thursday (14) in the La Plata region. There is , issued by the (Supreme Federal Court), for the Brazilian’s participation in the .
According to police information accessed by the report, he was detained following an arrest and detention order from the courts. His daughter Agnes claims that the arrest occurred at a time when he was seeking to renew his precarious, temporary immigration document in the country.
In the police report, the place of detention coincides with a post at the General Directorate of Migrations. The text speaks of Oliveira’s suspicious attitude. The term, however, is procedural. The reason, confirm people with knowledge of the case, is the extradition request. The information was sent to the federal court.
Oliveira was one of 63 Brazilians who had theirs. He and his wife, Alessandra, were sentenced to 17 years in prison due to their participation in the undemocratic acts of January 8th.
According to information obtained by the report through the law on access to local information, by mid-October 185 Brazilians had requested refuge in Argentina. For comparison purposes, in 2023 there were only three. The majority (109) are men, and the largest share of requests occurred in the month of May (47).
Until Thursday night, neither the Brazilian Embassy in Argentina nor the Brazilian Consulate General in Buenos Aires had information about the arrest.
Family members and acquaintances of Oliveira claim that his capture, still without clear reasons, would be a violation of refugee regulations. For fugitives, Argentina would be a safe space because, in theory, they could not be extradited until the competent body decides on their asylum requests, which could take years.
A month ago, however, . In a decree published by Javier Milei’s government, it was established that refuge will not be extended to anyone who is denounced or convicted in their country of origin “for a serious crime”.
The Argentine government detailed that it would be “terrorist activities, serious violations of human rights or any action that compromises international peace and security.” When questioned at the time, the fugitives said they were not afraid, believing that the accusations against them were of a political nature, and not common crimes.
