Brasília, June 11 (AFP/APP/DNA):Brazil’s far-right former president Jair Bolsonaro on Tuesday denied involvement in an alleged coup plot against his successor as he took the stand for the first time in a historic and high-stakes trial.
The 70-year-old was called to answer questions from lawyers and judges on his alleged role in a “criminal organization” that plotted to wrest back power after leftist Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva narrowly beat Bolsonaro at the ballot box in October 2022.
The plot only failed, the charge sheet says, for a lack of military backing.
Bolsonaro, a former army captain who governed Brazil from 2019 to 2022, was the sixth of eight accused to face questioning in a session that started on Monday.
Dressed smartly in a dark suit and tie, the former president placed a copy of the Brazilian constitution on the table in front of him as he settled in, facing the judges.
“That’s not the case, your honor,” Bolsonaro replied when asked by Judge Alexandre de Moraes — with whom he has had many previous run-ins — whether the accusations against him were true.
He insisted he had only discussed possible “constitutional mechanisms” after his legal challenges to the election outcome failed, and said he never saw any “coup memo” as alleged by the prosecution.
“From my side… there was never talk of a coup,” Bolsonaro told the court during two hours of questioning by Moraes — who the ex-president has labeled a “dictator.”
He also denied having knowledge of an alleged plan to kill Lula, his vice president Geraldo Alckmin and Moraes.
Bolsonaro and his co-accused could face prison sentences of up to 40 years if convicted.
:Brazil's far-right former president Jair Bolsonaro on Tuesday denied involvement in an alleged coup plot aga){kind=link}