Flavio Bolsonaro, the unsuccessful Brazilian presidential candidate currently facing investigation by Brazilian authorities, departed his nation and arrived in the United States on Wednesday morning.
Bolsonaro, his wife Fernanda and their two daughters Luiza and Carolina touched down at Miami-Opa Locka Executive Airport in Florida just after 9 a.m. ET.
Bolsonaro shielded from media by umbrellas at Florida airport
Photographs documented the aircraft’s arrival in South Florida and captured Bolsonaro, who lost to President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva in Sunday’s runoff election, exiting the aircraft with his family members.
The family was being shielded from photographers by umbrellas as they left the airport, BBC reported.
Silva criticised Bolsonaro’s move of fleeing Brazil as “shameful”.
“A person who sneaks out of their country must have something to hide,” Silva said, per Agence France-Presse. “The act of leaving Brazil is shameful.”
US issuing visas visas to Bolsonaro and his family
President Donald Trump’s administration is issuing Bolsonaro and his family visas, according to a State Department official who spoke with ABC News.
On Tuesday, Brazilian authorities stated they had no knowledge of Bolsonaro’s location and were investigating the possibility that he had fled to the United States, according to sources familiar with the inquiry.
Eduardo Bolsonaro, Jair Bolsonaro’s brother who lives in Texas, had openly advocated for his brother to depart Brazil in the event of an electoral defeat.
Flavio Bolsonaro probe
The former presidential candidate is under investigation regarding a sports betting matter and a probe concerning the production of a film about his father, Jair Bolsonaro, who served as Brazil’s president from 2019 to 2023, according to Brazilian authorities.
The Trump administration has been monitoring Flavio Bolsonaro’s intentions and expected that he would seek to depart Brazil and travel to the United States, ABC News reported, citing two U.S. officials with knowledge of the situation.
Without giving any evidence, Trump asserted on Monday Brazil’s election “looked like another rigged election, frankly.”
Trump and Bolsonaro’s relationship
Bolsonaro has emphasized his connection with Trump, including a White House visit in May. The relationship extends beyond the two leaders: Brother Eduardo Bolsonaro received an in absentia conviction in June for unlawful lobbying efforts directed at the Trump administration, resulting in a four-year prison sentence. An arrest warrant has been recently issued for him.