Brazilian judge issues arrest warrant for Eduardo Bolsonaro, brother of a presidential candidate

SAO PAULO (AP) — A Brazilian Supreme Court justice issued a warrant on Thursday for the arrest of Eduardo Bolsonaro, one of the brothers of presidential candidate Flávio Bolsonaro. Eduardo Bolsonaro was sentenced in June to four years in prison for lobbying the Trump administration.

Bolsonaro, a former lawmaker who lives in Texas and is a green card holder, is accused of lobbying to impose sanctions against members of the Brazilian government. The U.S. and Brazil have had an extradition agreement since 1961, but it wasn't immediately clear whether the terms would apply.

His lawyer didn't immediately respond to a request for comment from The Associated Press.

Justice Alexandre de Moraes' decision came less than three weeks before a runoff for the country’s presidency between incumbent Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and Flávio Bolsonaro, who won the first round on Sunday. Eduardo Bolsonaro has been a key link between his brother and the Trump administration.

The 42-year-old was convicted in June for encouraging the Trump administration to sanction members of the Brazilian government and impose higher tariffs on the country’s exports during the trial of his father, former President Jair Bolsonaro, for a coup attempt.

De Moraes, who the Bolsonaro family regards as a political enemy, also canceled Eduardo Bolsonaro's Brazilian passport. The judge chaired the investigation that led to Jair Bolsonaro being sentenced last year to 27 years in prison for a coup attempt, but has since been involved in corruption accusations.

De Moraes said in his ruling that Eduardo Bolsonaro should start serving his sentence immediately and warned the country's federal police that he should be arrested if he returns to Brazil.

“The defendant cannot benefit from his own wrongdoing by fleeing the national territory to an unknown location for the purpose of thwarting the application of criminal law,” the judge said.

Eduardo Bolsonaro has lived in the U.S. since 2025, which has caused him to lose his seat in the Brazilian National Congress and his job as a federal police investigator because of his long absence.

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