U.S. congressmen call for extradition of ex-Brazilian leader Bolsonaro to his homeland

Democratic US congressmen Joaquin Castro and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez called on US authorities to “stop granting asylum” to former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro and to extradite him to his homeland.

Castro compared the protests that erupted on Sunday in Brazil to the situation with the storming of the Capitol in the U.S. in January 2021. In his opinion, Bolsonaro used former U.S. President Donald Trump’s scenario to “inspire terrorists inside the country to try to take over.

“Right now Bolsonaro is in Florida … he should be extradited to Brazil. He is reportedly being investigated for corruption and has fled Brazil to the United States. He is a dangerous man, he should be sent back to his home country…. The U.S. should not be a safe haven for this authoritarian (leader) who has prompted domestic terrorism in Brazil,” Castro told CNN.

“The U.S. should stop sheltering Bolsonaro in Florida,” Ocasio-Cortez reacted on Twitter to the protests in Brazil.

The media previously reported that Bolsonaro flew to Florida in late December and missed the inauguration of new Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.

Supporters of former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro, protesting since late last year against the results of the presidential election, on Sunday seized the congress building in the Brazilian capital, broke into the grounds of the Planalto Palace, the president’s residence, as well as the Supreme Court building, local media reported earlier. Police only managed to clear the government buildings of the protesters by evening, more than 400 people were detained.

Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, who was all day on a working trip to Sao Paulo, during a press conference called the seizure of the government buildings in Brasilia barbaric, ordered to use the federal forces to restore order in the capital and replaced the local head of public security with the Deputy Minister of Justice.

Countries and international organizations in the Americas region spoke out in support of President Lula da Silva, calling the protesters’ actions an anti-democratic coup attempt.

On January 6, 2021, supporters of former U.S. President Donald Trump attacked the Capitol, blocking Congress for several hours. A female protester and a police officer were killed in the rioting, and three others died of non-violent causes. After the protesters were escorted out of the building, congressmen approved Joe Biden’s victory in the presidential election. Subsequently, hundreds of people in the U.S. were arrested by law enforcement on charges related to their participation in the Capitol assault.