Testimonials of former commanders Freire Gomes, from the Army, and Baptista Junior, from the Air Force, released today revealed details of the alleged institutional rupture plan set up by Jair Bolsonaro. The new information revealed point to the role of ministers such as Paulo Sergio Nogueira and the former Mandanician's advisors and ministers, such as Filipe Martins and Anderson Torres. The statements were released after a breach of confidentiality by the Supreme Court Minister, Alexandre de Moraes.
Freire Gomes' version
The then army commander Marco Antonio Freire Gomes detailed meetings he had with Bolsonaro and how the then president presented the plan to consummate the military coup.
Gomes admitted that he attended a meeting at the Dawn Palace on December 7, 2022. The trip was at the invitation of the then Minister of Defense, Paulo Sergio Nogueira. According to Gomes, the presidency advisor, Filipe Martins, read at the meeting "the" considerations "that would be the 'legal grounds' of the said draft of the coup."
The general also admitted that Bolsonaro presented different hypotheses for carrying out a coup, which would be consummated from the "use of legal institutes" such as the Guarantee of Law and Order (GLO), State of Defense or State of Siege. The execution of the plan would be a reaction to the result of the 2022 election.
Already in another meeting, on December 14, in which the three commanders again attended, General Paulo Sergio Nogueira re -presented the draft. In it were the plans for State of Defense Decree and the creation of an electoral regularity committee.
In cited excerpts, the statement collected by the Federal Police states that Freire Gomes “replied that he recalls meetings at the Alvorada Palace, after the second round of the elections, in which the then President of the Republic Jair Bolsonaro presented hypotheses of use of legal institutes such as GLO, state of defense and state of siege in relation to the electoral process ”.
Implications
Freire Gomes's testimony implies a series of figures. Among them is the former Justice Minister Anderson Torres. According to Gomes, the decree found in the house of the former chief of the folder was the same content as the debated with Bolsonaro and then with Nogueira. For Gomes, the role of Torres was to legally advise the coup decree to have viability.
Paulo Sérgio Nogueira was also one of those implicated, and he was on worse ground than before, since Freire Gomes' testimony is the first to reveal the participation of the minister general in meetings with members of the military leadership to discuss the draft of the coup.
The general also pointed to the then Navy commander, Almir Garnier. According to Gomes, he recalls that Admiral has made his troops available to Bolsonaro.
Finally, the former commander of the Army once again gave versions that contradict the testimonies of the former commander of Land Operations, Estevam Theophilo. Theophilo was one of the participants of the Bolsonarist hard core, and would have the function of coordinating the troops, especially the "special forces" during the culmination of the coup. In his testimony, Gomes said he was "uncomfortable" when he learned that Estevam met with Bolsonaro. However, Estevem told the PF that he only met with Bolsonaro at the commander's own determination, which was contradicted by Gomes.
Baptista Junior's testimony
The former Air Force commander, air brigadeiro Carlos de Almeida Baptista Junior, also gave more details about the rupture plan powered by the far right, as well as the reaction of the commanders at the time.
The brigadier also confirmed that Admiral Garnier Santos made the troops available to the then-president so that he could remain in office through a military coup. According to Baptista, Almir was the only commander who placed himself in this way.
Baptista Júnior also made statements that corroborate the role of Anderson Torres as a kind of legal advisor to the rupture, to assist Bolsonaro "in relation to the legal measures that the executive branch could adopt in the scenario discussed." According to him, the former Minister of Justice attended a meeting with the forces commanders and sought to "score legal aspects that would support exception measures (GLO and State of Defense)."
Unlike Gomes, who detailed two meetings, Baptista said he had participated in “more than five or six times” in meetings with the former Mandanker. Some of the meetings were summoned and occurred "without minutes and immediately." The invitation was always made by the then Minister of Defense, Paulo Sérgio Nogueira.
In one of these meetings, the then attorney general of the Union, Bruno Bianco, participated. According to the report, Bianco was questioned by Bolsonaro "if there would be any act that could be done against the outcome of the elections." The answer was that the election would have occurred "legally, within the legal aspects."
In the same line, the military stated that Bolsonaro knew that the transparency commission of the elections did not identify any fraud in the 2022 election, but still maintained criticism of the electoral system.
It is now known, with evidence, that these criticisms were part of Bolsonaro's plan to, through the demoralization of the ballot box, advance the agitation of the extreme right to put the election in check and move its rupture. References to this plan were made in meetings with ministers and military personnel in July 2022, recorded by Mauro Cid and released in the press last month.
In addition, Baptista Junior insisted on the version that Gomes tried to “convince the then president not to use these institutes [legal, GLO, state of defense or state of siege]”. Brigadier said he also informed Bolsonaro that none of the chosen instruments would serve to keep him in office after the beginning of 2023, with the inauguration of Luiz Inacio. Bolsonaro's reaction was "scared."
In one of the discussions, Freire Gomes would also have threatened to arrest Bolsonaro in case of rupture, according to Baptista.
“In one of the meetings of the commanders of the forces with the then President of the Republic, after the second round of the elections, after the President of the Republic, Jair Bolsonaro, to avoid the hypothesis of paying against the democratic regime, through some institutes provided for in Constitution (GLO or state of defense or state of siege), the then commander of the Army, General Freire Gomes, said that if I tried such an act would have to arrest the President of the Republic, ”said Baptista Júnior.
Bolsonaro was not the only one who was frightened by the developments of the situation. In his statement, the military stated that Augusto Heleno was "astonished" when he heard that Baptista would not participate in the rupture. After the fright, Heleno would have "suspicious about the matter."
Garnier Santos supported camps to 'support Freire Gomes'
Although he chose to remain silent during his testimony to the Federal Police, the words of Admiral Garnier Santos have come to light in recent days.
According to the CNN communication monopoly, Garnier Santos has reported nearby figures who signed the November 11th grade in 2022 in support of the camps in front of the barracks to support Freire Gomes, as part of a "agreed" between the commanders.
The admiral's justifications would be that Freire Gomes was pressured to demobilize the camps, and then commanders Garnier Santos and Baptista Junior would have signed the document. In Garnier's words, the movement went to “support” and “honor” Gomes.
The document called the camps "popular demonstrations" and criticized "eventual restrictions on rights by public agents." The note also described the Armed Forces as "moderators" at critical times.