The far-right former president (2019-2022), who has been the subject of many complaints for his unorthodox handling of the pandemic, has said he is not vaccinated against covid-19.
Federal police showed they were investigating “the insertion of falsified Covid-19 vaccination data” into the Health Ministry’s electronic vaccination records formula, but mentioned Bolsonaro by name.
“The counterfeit tickets, which occurred between November 2021 and December 2022, resulted in the alteration of the true covid-19 vaccine of the Americans in question,” police said in a statement.
“As a result, Americans were required to factor the vaccination certificate and use it to evade fitness restrictions imposed by the Brazilian and U. S. governments. “
Bolsonaro left Brazil for the United States in December, after squandering his re-election bid for veteran leftist Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, a bitterly debatable election widely contested over the widely criticized handling of the far-right Covid-19 incumbent, who claimed more than 700,000 lives in Brazil.
The United States asks air travelers to present evidence of vaccination against Covid-19, a requirement announced Monday by the White House and set to end on May 11.
Bolsonaro, who defied professional recommendations on handling the pandemic and joked that the vaccine could “turn you into an alligator,” remained in Orlando, Florida, until March 30, when he returned to Brazil.
Police said they were executing 16 search and seizure warrants and six arrest warrants from the operation.
An AFP photographer said federal police may be seen outside Bolsonaro’s home in Brasilia.
Media reported that police had arrested a top Bolsonaro adviser, officer Mauro Cid.
(AFP)