RIO DE JANEIRO, (Reuters) – Federal police arrested Brazil’s former Defense Minister Walter Braga Netto today, the army said, after the retired army general was accused in November of plotting a coup to overturn the results of the 2022 election.
Braga Netto also served as chief of staff for former President Jair Bolsonaro and was his running mate for a failed 2022 reelection bid.
Braga Netto, whom police accused of being a central figure in the alleged coup attempt, has denied any role in the event. His lawyers did not immediately reply to a request for comment.
In a statement that did not name Braga Netto, federal police said it had served two search warrants, an arrest warrant and a precautionary measure other than arrest against people allegedly hindering investigations.
The searches happened at Braga Netto’s residence in Rio de Janeiro and the home of retired colonel Flavio Botelho Peregrino in Brasilia, the army said in a statement, adding that Braga Netto would be put under army custody in Rio.
In November, federal police accused Braga Netto along with Bolsonaro, other cabinet members and former military commanders of plotting a coup to bar president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva from taking office after he won the 2022 election.
