Brazil Riots: Police Raid Home of Jair Bolsonaro’s Nephew in Connection With January 8

January 8 is considered Brazil's equivalent of January 6, and much like January 6, intensive investigations are now also underway. Now, Brazilian police are investigating former President Jair Bolsonaro's nephew, Leonardo Rodrigues de Jesus, in connection to the Brazil riot.

According to Al Jazeera News, Rodrigues de Jesus, also known as Leo Indio, is the first Bolsonaro family member to be publicly investigated by Brazilian authorities in connection to the January 8 riots that saw Bolsonaro supporters enter government buildings and destroy public properties, even surrounding the Presidential Palace in Brasilia.

Brazilian Federal Police conducted a series of raids into his home as he is targeted as one of the perpetrators behind the January 8 Brazil Riots. The Jair Bolsonaro nephew also posted photos and videos on the place where the Pro-Bolsonaro rioters first converged to protest the victory of President Lula. Rodrigues de Jesus even posted a selfie while red-eyed with what he claims to be tear gas. He also accused police of being "the real hooligans" when they targeted demonstrators.

Brazil's Justice Minister Flavio Dino stated on Twitter last Friday that the Brazilian Federal Police are now "carrying out 11 preventive arrest warrants and 27 search and seizure warrants against coup plotters and terrorists."

Protesters were urging police and military to join them in kicking out Lula and re-installing Bolsonaro into power. Many of these protesters were so confident that police were going to join their cause that when police started their counteroffensive, they were shocked.

Bolsonaro Nephew Claims Leftists Infiltrated Protesters and Were Responsible for the Riot

In what seems to be a rehashing of the excuses for the United States' January 6 Capitol Insurrection, Jair Bolsonaro nephew Leonardo Rodrigues de Jesus blamed leftists for the riot, claiming that pro-Lula leftists infiltrated the protesters and were the ones who rioted in order to pin the blame on Bolsonaro supporters.

This is similar to American right-wing media's claims that Antifa infiltrators managed to join the MAGA protesters and were the ones who led the January 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol. This was debunked in the hundreds of court cases that followed and showed it was indeed Trump supporters who led the charge.

Rodrigues de Jesus is close to one of Bolsonaro's sons, Carlos Bolsonaro, according to the Associated Press. The younger Bolsonaro currently serves as a city councilor in Rio de Janeiro and is often seen together with Rodrigues de Jesus in the presidential palace when the elder Bolsonaro was still president.

He served as Carlos Bolsonaro's aide before eventually moving to Brasilia. He eventually joined a pro-Bolsonaro senator's cabinet but was soon revealed to be a "phantom employee."

Lula Fires Army Chief in the Wake of January 8

The catastrophic security failure during January 8 also meant that some heads rolled. One of the biggest firings involved army chief, General Julio Cesar de Arruda. He reportedly failed to obey government orders to clear a camp of pro-Bolsonaro supporters, according to Al Jazeera News.

He was soon replaced by General Tomas Miguel Ribeiro Paiva, who previously headed the Southeast Military Command. Lula has since vowed to purge hardcore Bolsonaro loyalists from the security forces.

This article is owned by Latin Post.

Written by: Rick Martin

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