Last Tuesday (26) brings strong elements of linking () with the call, but, at other points, makes categorical statements based on partial evidence that is subject to further questioning.
The established scenario, and that of those indicted themselves, points to an unequivocal coup plot at the end of 2022. Although the PF lists a series of conclusions in the 884 pages of the document, some still lack substantial elements — such as that Bolsonaro knew about the plan to kill (), () and the minister, of the STF (Supreme Federal Court).
See, in some of the main cases, what there is evidence, what the PF says and any gaps:
Minute of the blow
Disguised as , the document had . In short, it established measures to annul the result of Lula’s election and keep Bolsonaro in power.
Seeking support for the venture, the then president presented the document to the heads of the Armed Forces on December 7, 2022, according to several testimonies, and, possibly, to General Estevam Theophilo, commander of Army Land Operations, two days later , on December 9th.
The coup document was also the subject of a new meeting with the commanders of the Navy, Army and Air Force, this time led by the Minister of Defense, General Paulo Sérgio, on December 14th.
According to the PF, General Freire Gomes (Army) and Brigadier Carlos de Almeida Baptista Junior (Air Force) did not agree to the coup. Admiral Almir Garnier Santos (Navy), yes.
The evidence presented is the testimonies of Freire Gomes, Baptista Junior and Mauro Cid (the then head of Bolsonaro’s order assistance), in addition to the draft decree itself and seized messages indicating that the commanders of the Army and Air Force became targets of attacks on the networks for not agreeing with the coup plan, while the head of the Navy should be praised.
The former president himself said that he studied all the measures within the Constitution, which in this argument included, even in a normal scenario, exceptional actions such as a state of defense and siege.
The plan to kill Moraes, Lula and Alckmin
The PF categorically states that Bolsonaro knew about the plan “”, created on the computer of retired general Mario Fernandes, then number 2 in the General Secretariat of the Presidency. The file listed the steps, weapons and personnel needed to assassinate Moraes (not mentioned by name), .
The connection to Bolsonaro is due to the fact that, on November 9, 40 minutes after this document was printed at the Palácio do Planalto, Fernandes went to the Palácio da Alvorada. On December 9, one day after being at Alvorada, as official records attest, the general sends a message to Cid reporting that Bolsonaro “accepted ‘our advice'”, according to the PF.
On the same day, the 9th, Bolsonaro held elections and, to supporters in Alvorada, stated that it was the people “who decide where the Armed Forces will go” and also declared that there was “a crucial moment, a crossroads”.
Despite the evidence, there is no other element in the report confirming that the document was discussed. The former president denied science. “Never. There is no death penalty within four lines,” he said.
Cid also denied that he or Bolsonaro knew about the plan to kill the authorities. He told Moraes that Mario Fernandes was his most exalted ally.
Braga Netto and approval for the assassination plan
The says that the general received in his apartment, in Brasília, Cid and military personnel involved in the plan to kill Moraes on November 12, 2022. It presents as evidence messages exchanged between the officers, cell phone connection records with telecommunications antennas and excerpts from the Cid’s denunciation.
According to the PF, the meeting would allow the military to present the authorities’ execution plan to the former minister and vice-president of Bolsonaro’s ticket. Braga Netto, says the report, agreed and ordered it to continue.
There is no unquestionable evidence in this regard. Cid at this meeting.
There are also no elements in the report that demonstrate that the “Yellow Green Dagger” was passed on to the military coup plotters before this meeting.
The main finding, which makes the PF conclude that the meeting dealt with the coup plan, are messages exchanged between Major Rafael de Oliveira and Cid, in which the former asks for money. The PF states that this aimed to put the plan into operation.
Moraes Monitoring
The PF presented several signs that point to the movement of military personnel on December 15 to arrest, kidnap or murder Moraes.
But the police have not yet been able to clearly identify all the participants in the field action, and there is doubt about why and on whose orders the plan was put into practice and, in the end, ended.
At first, the PF indicates that the operation may not have been completed due to the early end of the session. In the final report, it states that the action was also aborted because it did not have the support of the Army commander, General Freire Gomes.
According to the PF’s own investigation, the general’s refusal to participate in the coup plot had already been evident since at least December 7th.
Lula monitoring
The PF claims that the elected presidential ticket was monitored.
As evidence, it points out that, through the cell phone signal of two of those investigated, it was possible to know that they were at the end of November in an area close to the Meliá hotel, where it was publicly known that Lula was staying.
It turns out that the range of the ERBs (Radio Base Stations) covers a wide area of the central region of Brasília, which includes shopping centers, offices and various commercial points. The PF does not present evidence that the hotel would be the precise location within this location radius.
The other point presented are messages from federal police officer Wladimir Matos Soares, who participated in the security of the then president-elect. Although the agent expressed support for the coup plan, there is no indication in the messages that he was participating in the plan to assassinate Lula and Alckmin.
