(JustPatriots.com)- Last Thursday, Brazil’s Federal Police began serving dozens of search warrants on supporters of President Jair Bolsonaro for blocking highways after his election loss.
The operation was ordered by Justice Alexandre de Moraes from Brazil’s Supreme Court. Moraes presides over the nation’s electoral authority and is responsible for two investigations into alleged anti-democratic acts and the spread of election misinformation on social media by Bolsonaro supporters.
In a statement last Thursday, the Supreme Court said the 81 search warrants were issued in relation to an investigation that is proceeding under seal. The warrants were served in seven states and the Federal District.
Separately, the Federal Police carried out 23 additional searches and at least four preventative detentions in the state of Espirito Santo related to election misinformation.
According to local reports, at least 15 guns were seized during the operation, including a submachine gun and ammunition.
After staying out of the public eye for over a month, Bolsonaro made his first speech on December 9. Speaking to his supporters outside the presidential residence, Bolsonaro said he is the commander in chief of the armed forces and each citizen should work to build a better future for Brazil.
Bolsonaro’s supporters remain camped outside military buildings in several state capitals around the country pleading for military intervention, though these demonstrations have remained largely peaceful.
After reports that firearms were seized in last Thursday’s searches, President-elect da Silva’s incoming justice minister Flávio Dino tweeted that “anti-democratic acts” are not “freedom of expression.”
Brazil’s Vice President Hamilton Mourão recently published a column in the local press telling protesters to stand strong while also condemning the violence.
The blog The National File claimed last week that some of the violence in Brazil is being perpetrated by Leftists who are only pretending to be supporters of Bolsonaro. The blog quoted a Bolsonaro supporter who alleged that leftist agitators have “infiltrated” the protests.
