Corruption probe into Flavio Bolsonaro rattles tight Brazil election race
Brazilian Senator Flavio Bolsonaro, the leading right-wing challenger to President Lula, is under investigation for alleged corruption and money laundering linked to failed lender Banco Master, according to newly unsealed court documents.
Supreme Court Justice Andre Mendonca opened a probe into Senator Flavio Bolsonaro, eldest son of former president Jair Bolsonaro, back in July, but the investigation only became public after Chief Justice Edson Fachin ordered related court records unsealed on Friday.
Mendonca, a Bolsonaro appointee, released thousands of pages of documents, though parts of the case — including specifics of the probe into the senator — remain sealed while police continue their work.
Tied to film financing
The investigation centers on an investment Flavio Bolsonaro allegedly sought from Daniel Vorcaro, owner of Banco Master, to help fund "Dark Horse," a film about his father starring US actor Jim Caviezel. The senator said Friday he had "nothing to hide" and described the film's financing as "completely legal."
Questions about the arrangement first surfaced in May, when the senator acknowledged seeking Vorcaro's financial backing while denying any wrongdoing — a disclosure that dented his standing in opinion polls at the time. Federal police subsequently asked Justice Mendonca to authorize an investigation into possible money laundering, illicit foreign exchange dealings and corruption, citing donations Vorcaro made to the film. Vorcaro was arrested in March.
Supreme Court in crisis
The development adds to turmoil already gripping Brazil's institutions over Vorcaro's alleged ties to government officials, opposition figures and Supreme Court justices, including Alexandre de Moraes. Mendonca recently released messages police say Vorcaro sent to Moraes, fueling calls to investigate the justice himself. Fachin has scheduled a full-court session for Tuesday to address the allegations.
The news arrives as polls show Flavio Bolsonaro statistically tied with Lula in a simulated runoff. Seeking distance from the court crisis, Lula publicly backed unsealing the case Thursday, saying allegations involving politics or the judiciary should always be made public, "regardless of who it hurts."
