Several probes target Brazil’s Bolsonaro, but his COVID decisions are catching up to him first

By ELÉONORE HUGHES and MAURICIO SAVARESE
Associated Press

RIO DE JANEIRO (AP) — As Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro’s term wound down in the final days of December 2022, he had decided to skip the ritual of handing over the presidential sash to his successor, and instead made plans to travel abroad. But there was a problem, according to a Federal Police indictment: Bolsonaro didn’t have the necessary vaccination certificate required by U.S. authorities. So Bolsonaro allegedly turned to his aide-de-camp and asked him to insert false data into the public health system to make it appear as though he and his 12-year-old daughter had received the COVID-19 vaccine. Cid told police he printed out the certificates and hand-delivered them to Bolsonaro, according to detective Fábio Alvarez Shor.