The former general director of the PRF () Silvinei Vasques to escape the sentence of 24 years and 6 months in prison imposed on him by the , reported this Friday (26).
It is still not clear what exactly Silvinei’s plan was, but it is possible that he hoped to be sheltered by the Bolsonarist, revered by the Bolsonarist right for its hard-line security policy and little affection for democratic rules.
The plan, however, and Silvinei was captured at the airport in Asunción, capital of Paraguay, when he tried to board a flight with a false passport.
The former head of the PRF is now sentenced for having put the institution at the service of a coup attempt to keep the former president in power, by trying to prevent voters from voting in the second round of elections.
Silvinei’s choice is not exactly a surprise, since El Salvador does not come out of the mouth of Bolsonarist politicians. They see the Central American country as a beautiful advertisement for Brazil’s security model.
Crime rates have indeed plummeted there, but this has been at the expense of an exceptional regime that has lasted more than three and a half years, the arrest of thousands of innocent people, collective trials, persecution of the press and the country.
Furthermore, violent crime may be down due to a pact that would have been signed between Bukele and the country’s main gangs — as the Salvadoran president’s predecessors did.
El Faro, the main investigative newspaper in Central America, reported in September 2020, based on prison intelligence reports, that Bukele had made an agreement with MS-13, the largest gang in the country. Under this pact, criminals would receive prison benefits to keep violence under control, reducing homicides.
In December 2021, a United States Department of Treasury investigation confirmed information released by El Faro and concluded that the government had also offered financial incentives to MS-13 and another gang, Barrio 18, as part of the same agreement.
None of this, however, is considered by the radical right, which this year intensified the pilgrimage to El Salvador with the alleged aim of learning more about Bukele’s security policy.
In November, the senator, the impeached federal deputy and the federal deputy met on different occasions with the Minister of Public Security and Justice, Gustavo Villatoro.
Villatoro is a well-known figure among rural politicians. In May 2023, he participated via video call in a meeting of the Public Security Commission of the Chamber of Deputies, at the invitation of federal deputy Osmar Terra (PL), former Minister of Citizenship in the Bolsonaro government. On the occasion, the Salvadoran promoted the Bukele administration’s security measures.
“The Salvadoran experience proves that it is possible to defeat crime. Brazil has a way!”, wrote Flávio after the meeting with the minister.
Nikolas Ferreira, in turn, also visited CECOT (Terrorism Confinement Center), announced by Bukele as the largest prison in the Americas. “I came face to face with the biggest criminals in the world. And yes, here human rights work: no privileges, perks or perks for them. Only the firm rigor of the law. Here you pay — and very dearly”, the deputy published on the networks.
Another who joined the pilgrimage and secured clicks there was the presidential candidate, governor of Minas Gerais. The trip with his entourage, in May, cost the state coffers R$197,000.
that security is Brazil’s main problem for 16% of the population, surpassing the economy and second only to health. In the next elections, Bukele must continue to be invoked by the radical right, which traveled thousands of kilometers to secure campaign material.
