BRASILIA, Brazil: In a recent development, legal counsel for Lt. Col. Mauro Cid, former right-hand man to ex-Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro, has made claims that Bolsonaro instructed Cid to sell undisclosed luxury jewellery received as gifts and divert the proceeds to the president himself.
This revelation comes in the wake of an interview published by Brazilian magazine Veja and has been confirmed by Cezar Bittencourt, Cid’s lawyer, during a conversation with The Associated Press.
According to Bittencourt, the events transpired in December of 2022 when Cid inquired about a Rolex watch presented to Bolsonaro by the Saudi Arabian government in 2019. In response, Bolsonaro allegedly instructed Cid to “handle it,” subsequently leading to the aide selling two watches in the United States and forwarding the proceeds to Bolsonaro.
Just a week ago, Brazil’s Federal Police levelled accusations that Bolsonaro benefited financially from the sale of the two watches, garnering nearly $70,000. These watches were part of a trio of jewellery sets gifted to the former president by Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. Concerns arose when it was discovered that Bolsonaro’s office imported the jewellery into the country without proper declaration, sparking suspicions of illicit possession of government property and potential money laundering. This investigation was brought to light in March.
In line with Brazilian regulations, individuals entering the country by air are required to declare items valued at over $1,000 and pay a tax amounting to 50 percent of the value exceeding that threshold. If the jewellery were classified as official gifts to Brazil, they would have been exempt from taxation, but Bolsonaro’s entitlement to retain them would have been questioned.
Bolsonaro and his legal team have consistently maintained that the jewellery constituted personal gifts, allowing him the prerogative to sell them at his discretion. However, investigators discovered that Bolsonaro only documented the jewellery in his personal collection shortly before his departure from office.
When news of the investigation surfaced in March, Bolsonaro initially professed ignorance about the gifted items. Subsequently, his stance underwent variations. Most recently, in a video addressed to the Brazilian newspaper Estadao, Bolsonaro stated that Cid had autonomy in dealing with the jewellery and did not receive specific directives.
This disclosure by Bittencourt, on behalf of Cid, marks the first time the former aide has spoken publicly about the jewellery matter. Notably, Cid was apprehended in May on charges of forging COVID-19 vaccine cards for both his family members and the Bolsonaro family. In July, Cid was summoned to testify before a special congressional committee investigating the violent events of January 8, during which Bolsonaro’s supporters wreaked havoc in the capital, Brasilia. Cid, however, remained uncommunicative throughout the entirety of the session.
Coinciding with these unfolding events, seven high-ranking military police officers were taken into custody in connection with the January 8 attacks. Additionally, Supreme Court justice Alexandre de Moraes authorized the lifting of bank secrecy for both Bolsonaro and Cid’s accounts in the United States. This move indicates a potentially deeper inquiry into their financial transactions.
