One of the Army officers suspected of a coup plot, which would include the death of (, () and the minister of , spoke of “civil war” if the “rein” was not taken immediately.
“If we don’t take the reins now, later I think it will be worse. In reality it will be civil war now or civil war later. But the civil war now has a justification, the people are in the streets, we have that massive support “, said Colonel Roberto Raimundo Criscouli in audio recovered by .
The conversations are part of the evidence used by the PF to indict () and 36 other people for the coup plot to prevent Lula from taking office in 2022.
In addition to Bolsonaro, reserve general Braga Netto, former Minister of Defense and vice-president in 2022 on the defeated ticket, were indicted. Military personnel are the majority among the suspects — 25 in total.
“Soon we’re going to enter into a civil war, because in a few months this guy is going to destroy the Army, he’s going to destroy everything,” Criscouli said in another part of the conversation.
According to the investigation files, Criscouli sent the audio to General Mário Fernandes on November 4, 2022, a few days after Lula defeated Bolsonaro.
Fernandes was arrested on Tuesday (19) in Operation Contragolpe. He is considered responsible for the plan to kill the then elected president, Lula, his vice president, Alckmin, and Moraes, of the Superior Federal Court.
In another excerpt, according to the police report, Criscouli asks if he will wait for Brazil to transform into Venezuela “to change the game.”
“Democrats are the shit, you don’t have to be democrats anymore now. ‘Ah, I’m not going to leave the four lines’, the game is over, man. There are no more four lines”, he stated.
“Now the people on the street are asking ‘for the love of God’. Will there be a civil war? It will happen, I’m sure, because the reds will come fierce. But what are we waiting for? Giving them time to organize themselves better for the war to be worse? Brother, come on now, talk to 01 there, man. It’s now,” he said, without saying who he was referring to as number 1.
The PF states in the document that those investigated were concerned about the anti-democratic movements that were on the streets, “mainly with the possibility of losing control over the mass of people involved in the demonstrations.”
“Furthermore, it indicates that the coup may be frustrated if it waits too long, as, from December 20th, the Military Command would be ‘passed on’ to military personnel appointed by the elected government, referred to in the message as ‘eventual government of the prisoner'”, says an excerpt from the document.
On November 8, according to the police, Fernandes sent a message to Mauro Cid, Bolsonaro’s former aide-de-camp, in which he reported his work directly “with the forces”, as well as providing guidance to “agricultural people” and truck drivers . The military asked that the matter be taken to the then president. In response, Cid states that he would talk to Bolsonaro and that time is “short”.
“No, you can leave it, general. I’ll talk to the president. The thing is, he has that personality sometimes. He waits, waits, waits, waits to see how far he goes, to see the support he has. But sometimes the Time is short, we can’t wait much longer. The 12th would be… It would have to be before the 12th, but nothing will definitely happen”, he said.
Coup before graduation
In a conversation intercepted by the PF, Mauro Cid, then Bolsonaro’s aide-de-camp, argued that the coup should take place before “the 12th”, in reference, according to the PF, to Lula’s diplomacy.
“I’m going to talk to the president [Bolsonaro]. The thing is, he has that personality sometimes. He waits [..] to see how far it goes, see the support it has. But sometimes, time is short. You can’t wait much longer to pass. It would have to be before the 12th, but nothing will certainly happen”, Cid said in an audio to Fernandes.
The general also sent an audio to Cid in which he expressed concern about the future of the demonstrations. He recalls that he would have spoken with Bolsonaro and that, at the time, the then president would have given approval for action until December 31st.
Still referring to the conversation with Bolsonaro, Fernandes said that he would have conveyed the fear that demonstrations taking place in front of the barracks would weaken.
“As of next week, I even mentioned this to him [Bolsonaro]one of two: the street demonstration movements, either they will fade away or they will intensify. Increase radicalism and we lose control. Anything can happen. But they can fade too,” said Fernandes.
Hacker statement
The PF also identified another exchange of messages between Criscuoli and Mário Fernandes in which they discuss the testimony of a hacker who had information about fraud in electronic voting machines.
In the audios obtained by investigators, Fernandes asked for the contact details of a delegate for Criscuoli. The police officer the general refers to is Victor Carvalho, then superintendent of the PF in the Federal District and current secretary of Public Security in Rio.
In response, the colonel sent a message that he would have sent: “Hold on, Victor, how are you? Victor, he [o hacker] Okay, he’s going to have lunch and he’s going to go there regardless of the content of the statement, okay? So, regardless of what the boss says, he goes there. So, between 1 pm and 2 pm at the most, he will arrive at your location. Are you firm? Big hug. If you have any questions, call me. Strength”.
HAS Sheet Victor Carvalho said that he sent the hacker’s statement to the TSE (Superior Electoral Court) after identifying that he spoke “belief”.
Lira’s House
In an audio dated December 19, 2022, Mário Fernandes’ chief of staff, Colonel Reginaldo Vieira de Abreu, says that he asked the protesters to go to Palácio da Alvorada, but that Bolsonaro did not appear.
Then, Colonel Vieira talks about the possibility of sending protesters to the house of Arthur Lira (PP-AL), president of the Chamber, but that he would be embarrassed to ask after supporters had spent three hours waiting for Bolsonaro.
“Well, I asked people to go to the president’s house, they crowded, they stayed there for three hours, he didn’t even show up. You must be embarrassed, right? Then ask people to go to Arthur Lira’s house. Then, man, I’m embarrassed to ask,” he says. “He must have the moral courage, at least until Thursday, to say that he no longer wants to, right? Guys, at least spend Christmas at home”, adds Vieira in an audio to General Mário Fernandes.
