Brazil’s ex-president Jair Bolsonaro indicted over alleged falsification of his own vaccination data

During the pandemic, Bolsonaro was one of the few world leaders railing against the vaccine, flouting health restrictions and encouraging society to follow suit

Police accuse Bolsonaro and his aides of tampering with the health ministry’s database shortly before he travelled to the US in December 2022

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Brazil’s former president Jair Bolsonaro greets supporters after attending a campaign event launching the pre-candidacy of a mayoral candidate, in Rio de Janeiro. Photo: AP

Published: 9:50pm, 19 Mar 2024

Brazil’s federal police have accused former president Jair Bolsonaro of criminal association and falsifying his own Covid-19 vaccination data, marking the first indictment for the embattled far-right leader with others potentially in store.

The Supreme Court released the police’s indictment on Tuesday that alleged Bolsonaro and 16 others inserted false information into the public health database to make it appear as though the then-president, his 12-year-old daughter and several others in his circle had received the Covid-19 vaccine.

During the pandemic, Bolsonaro was one of the few world leaders railing against the vaccine, openly flouting health restrictions and encouraging society to follow his example. His administration ignored several emails from pharmaceutical company Pfizer offering to sell Brazil tens of millions of shots in 2020 and openly criticised a move by Sao Paulo state’s then-governor João Doria to buy vaccines from Chinese company Sinovac when no jabs were otherwise available.

A woman walks past a banner featuring the Brazilian national flag and an image of former president Jair Bolsonaro with a message that reads in Portuguese: “Ex, most beloved of Brazil”, in Rio de Janeiro. Photo: AP

Brazil’s prosecutor-general’s office will have the final say on whether to use the police indictment to file charges against Bolsonaro at the Supreme Court. It stems from one of several investigations targeting Bolsonaro, who governed between 2019 and 2022.

Bolsonaro’s lawyer did not immediately respond to a request for comment from The Associated Press. The former president denied any wrongdoing during questioning in May last year.

Police accuse Bolsonaro and his aides of tampering with the health ministry’s database shortly before he travelled to the US in December 2022, two months after he lost his re-election bid to Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.

Bolsonaro needed a certificate of vaccination to enter the US, where he remained for the final days of his term and the first months of Lula’s term.