Brazilian authorities have cancelled the passports of defeated presidential candidate Flávio Bolsonaro after he failed to surrender the travel documents within a deadline set by the country’s Supreme Court, according to reports.
The decision followed a court order issued on Monday directing Bolsonaro to hand over his passports to police within 24 hours as part of an investigation into alleged money laundering, accusations he denies.
Bolsonaro had said he had no intention of leaving Brazil, insisting that he would remain in the country to lead the opposition to President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. However, the deadline elapsed without him surrendering the documents.
According to a police source cited by BBC News Brasil, federal officers are checking border crossings to determine whether the senator travelled to neighbouring Argentina.
Argentine authorities, however, told the BBC that there was no record of Bolsonaro entering the country through any border crossing.
The passport cancellation comes amid mounting legal scrutiny of the 45-year-old politician, who was already being investigated over alleged corruption involving the financing of a film about his father, former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro.
In a separate development, Brazil’s Supreme Court on Tuesday ordered police to investigate Flávio Bolsonaro’s presidential campaign over allegations of foreign funding.
The senator’s legal troubles follow his defeat to Lula in Sunday’s presidential run-off election. Lula secured 51.79 per cent of the vote against Bolsonaro’s 48.21 per cent, according to the official results.
Despite losing by approximately 4.4 million votes, Bolsonaro has refused to concede defeat and has called for the election to be annulled.
He argued that extending voting hours by two hours on election day placed him at a disadvantage, describing the decision as a “dirty trick”. However, the extension had reportedly been requested by both his party and Lula’s political camp.
Although Bolsonaro’s Liberal Party accepted the election result, it said the extension of voting hours warranted investigation.
Lula’s victory marked a significant comeback after Bolsonaro had taken the lead in the first round of voting on October 4. The incumbent president ultimately overturned that advantage in the run-off to secure another four-year term.
The passport cancellation and additional campaign-financing investigation now add to the legal and political challenges facing Bolsonaro as he contests the circumstances surrounding his electoral defeat.
