Flavio Bolsonaro Left Brazil in Van and Jet Despite Court Order
A former Mossad agent accompanied the senator across the border to Argentina, where he boarded a private flight to Miami.
By Kofi Costa ·
Flavio Bolsonaro, son of former President Jair Bolsonaro, left Brazil on October 27 despite a Supreme Court order prohibiting his departure. He crossed the border into Argentina on Tuesday, six days after losing the presidential election's second round to incumbent President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.
Brazilian security officials identified the vehicle used for the crossing as a commercial van. Footage from security cameras on the Tancredo Neves Bridge showed two vans traveling from Foz do Iguaçu to Puerto Iguazú. Flavio Bolsonaro and a former Mossad agent, who had arrived in Brasília on October 19, rode in one vehicle. His wife and two daughters traveled in the second van, driven by a former municipal council member from Foz do Iguaçu and his son.
The former Israeli intelligence officer, a naturalized U.S. citizen, remained in the car with the senator during the border crossing. Brazilian investigators found no official record of the senator passing through standard border control checkpoints. The Federal Police described the event as a planned operation internally labeled Operation Alba.
Upon reaching Argentina, the group boarded a Gulfstream G400 executive jet operated by the airline Baires Fly. The aircraft refueled in Guayaquil, Ecuador, and landed at Opa-locka Executive Airport in Miami on Wednesday morning. A report in The New York Times stated that Jason Miller, a political strategist for U.S. President Donald Trump, helped arrange the flight.
Argentine media reported that Santiago Caputo, an advisor to President Javier Milei, was present in the border area to oversee the operation. He reportedly worked to prevent documentation of the crossing. The Brazilian Foreign Ministry has summoned Argentina's representative to seek clarification on the Milei administration's involvement.
Twenty-five Democratic members of Congress asked the U.S. administration to explain if diplomatic resources assisted the escape. In Brazil, Justice Alexandre de Moraes had ordered the confiscation of Bolsonaro's passports following his election defeat. He is under investigation for suspected money laundering related to gambling platforms and a film about his father, though these allegations have not yet been proven in court.
The Federal Police are considering a request to the Supreme Court to freeze the senator's assets and bank accounts. Current findings regarding foreign assistance come from a security agency investigation released to the media, not from a final judicial ruling.
