The divisive right-winger categorically denied any wrongdoing, his lawyers saying he “never appropriated or misappropriated any public good,” in a statement posted on the G1 news site.
The scandal broke earlier this year, when newspaper Estado de Sao Paulo reported customs officials had seized a set of jewels from a government aide who tried to bring them into the country undeclared in his backpack in 2021.
Brazilian law bars public officials from keeping expensive gifts.
Elements of the police investigation were disclosed in a judgment by Supreme Court judge Alexandre de Moraes to justify search warrants carried out by federal police on Friday at the homes of former Bolsonaro aides.
“The evidence collected showed (the existence) during the presidency of Jair Bolsonaro, of a network to divert goods of a high amount which were offered to him,” part of the judgment read.
“Beyond allowing an inadmissible enrichment of the President of the Republic… it is possible that the Brazilian head of state was co-opted by foreign nations through these assets”, investigators believe.
They also reported goods placed in “a suitcase transported on the presidential plane on December 30”, when Bolsonaro left Brazil for the United States, two days before the inauguration of his left-wing successor Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, who defeated him in an October 2022 election.
Among these state gifts were two sculptures given by the government of Bahrain during a state visit in 2021, as well as gifts from Saudi Arabia including a watch and a fountain pen from the Swiss luxury brand Chopard, investigators say.
One of those suspected of reselling these gifts is Mauro Cid, a former top aide to Bolsonaro, who has been in prison since May over falsification of Covid-19 vaccination certificates.
According to investigators, Cid mentioned in an audio message “25,000 dollars in cash” which would be intended for the ex-president after the sale of certain goods.
Known for a brash style that earned him the nickname “Tropical Trump,” Bolsonaro, the former army captain turned congressman surged to prominence as a presidential candidate in 2018 by playing to voters disgusted with corruption and economic mismanagement.
After presiding over a presidency marked by scandals including his handling of Covid-19, Bolsonaro has now been barred from office for eight years over his unproven claims of massive fraud in the country’s election system.
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