Brazil police carry out more raids as part of Jan. 8 riots probe

[August 17, 2023]  SAO PAULO (Reuters) -Brazil's federal police said on Thursday they were carrying out a fresh round of raids and arrests as part of an investigation into the Jan. 8 riots in Brasilia, in which supporters of former President Jair Bolsonaro stormed government buildings. 

Security forces operate as supporters of Brazil's former President Jair Bolsonaro demonstrate against President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, outside Brazil’s National Congress in Brasilia, Brazil, January 8, 2023. REUTERS/Adriano Machado/File Photo

Police, according to a statement, were serving 10 arrest warrants and 16 search and seizure warrants in five states and the federal district, where Brasilia is located.

The raids represent the fourteenth phase of an operation launched in mid-January to identify people who participated in, funded or fostered the riots, in which a crowd invaded and ransacked the Congress, presidential palace and Supreme Court.

Police did not disclose the names of those targeted, but said they were being investigated for crimes of "violent abolition of the rule of law, coup d'état, qualified damage, criminal association, incitement, destruction and damge of specially protected property."

The targets of the raids, police added, were suspected of fomenting a "violent movement" known as "Festa da Selma," which they said was a codename used by rioters to refer to the invasions.

Justice Minister Flavio Dino confirmed Thursday's operation in a post on social media platform X. The warrants being served were all issued by the Supreme Court, police said.

(Reporting by Gabriel Araujo; Editing by Kylie Madry)

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