Brasilia: Brazil's prosecutor-office general has filed the first charges against some of the thousands of people who authorities say stormed government buildings in an attempt to reverse the election defeat of former President Jair Bolsonaro in October. Had given.
Prosecutors in the newly formed Anti-Democracy Acts group have also requested that the 39 defendants who sabotaged Congress be imprisoned as a preventive measure, and that 40 million ($40 million) of their assets be forfeited to help cover the damage. 7.7 million) to be confiscated.
The defendants are charged with armed criminal association, violent attempt to subvert the democratic rule of law, coup d'état and damage to public property, according to a written statement released Monday night by the prosecutor general's office. His identity has not been revealed yet.
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Over a thousand people were arrested during the day of the January 8 riots, which was similar to the riots at the United States Congress on January 6, 2021, by a mob demanding the reversal of former President Donald Trump's election loss.
Rioters stormed the Brazilian Congress, the presidential palace and the Supreme Court in Brasilia, calling on the armed forces to intervene and President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva to reverse Bolsonaro's defeat.
The rioters "attempted, with violence and grave danger, to subvert the democratic rule of law, prevent or restrict the exercise of constitutional powers,"
According to a statement cited by the allegations. "The ultimate goal of the attack ... was the establishment of a separate government regime."
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The attackers were not charged with terrorism because such a charge requires xenophobia or prejudice based on race, ethnicity or religion under Brazilian law.
After the President of the Senate, Rodrigo Pacheco, provided a list of those accused of rampaging through Congress last week, the Prosecutor-General's Office forwarded his allegations to the Supreme Court. More rioters are expected to face charges.