Brazilian Supreme Court panel orders ex-President Bolsonaro to stand trial over alleged coup plan

RIO DE JANEIRO (AP) — A panel of Brazil Supreme Court justices on Wednesday unanimously accepted charges against former President Jair Bolsonaro over an alleged attempt to stay in office after his 2022 election defeat, and ordered him to stand trial.

Prosecutor-General Paulo Gonet has accused Bolsonaro and 33 others of attempting a coup that included a plan to poison his successor, current President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, and kill a Supreme Court judge.

The justices said seven close allies should also stand trial on five counts: attempting to stage a coup, involvement in an armed criminal organization, attempted violent abolition of the democratic rule of law, damage characterized by violence and a serious threat against the state’s assets, and deterioration of listed heritage.

The former president has repeatedly denied wrongdoing and says he’s being politically persecuted. A lawyer for Bolsonaro did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

“It seems that there is something personal against me,” Bolsonaro told journalists after the panel's decision. “The accusation is very serious and (is) unfounded.”

Under Brazilian law, a coup conviction carries a sentence of up to 12 years. When combined with the other charges, it could result in a sentence of decades behind bars.

“Coups kill,” Justice Flávio Dino said when casting his vote. “It doesn’t matter if it happens today, the following month or a few years later.”

Gonet on Tuesday said those facing the charges sought to keep Bolsonaro in power “at all costs,” in a multi-step scheme that accelerated after the far-right politician lost to the current president.

As in his February indictment, Gonet said part of the plot included a plan to kill Lula and Justice Alexandre de Moraes, who were put under surveillance by the alleged conspirators. The plan did not go ahead at the last minute because the accused failed to get the army's commander on board, Gonet said.

“Frustration overwhelmed the members of the criminal organization who, however, did not give up on the violent seizure of power, not even after the elected president of the republic was sworn in,” he said.

That was a reference to the Jan. 8, 2023, riot when Bolsonaro supporters stormed the Supreme Court, presidential palace and Congress in Brasilia a week after Lula took office.

De Moraes on Wednesday showed the panel a video with scenes from that day. “We had a very violent coup attempt,” he said. “A savage violence, in total incivility, with the request for military intervention in the coup d’état.”

Bolsonaro on Wednesday denied any involvement and said he was in the U.S. at the time, having left a few days before the end of his term. “One of the five charges against me is destruction of property. Only if it were by telepathy,” he told journalists.

Bolsonaro's running mate during the 2022 election and former Defense Minister Walter Braga Netto, ex-Justice Minister Anderson Torres and his aide-de-camp Mauro Cid, among others, will also stand trial. The court will decide on the others' fate later.

Observers had expected the charges to be accepted.

Lula said Thursday that the evidence supported the charges against Bolsonaro.

“It is clear that the former president tried to stage a coup in the country. It is clear from all the evidence that he tried to contribute to my assassination, to the assassination of the former president of the Brazilian Electoral Court,” Lula said while on a four-day visit to Japan.

“I just hope that the justice system will do justice," he added.

João Pedro Pádua, a law professor at the Fluminense Federal University, said the vote was not a surprise, but it was historic.

“It is the first time a former head of state will be tried for the crimes of coup d’état and violent abolition of the democratic and legal state," he said.

Bolsonaro, a former military officer who was known to express nostalgia for the country’s past dictatorship, openly defied Brazil’s judicial system during his 2019-2022 term in office.

He has sought to shore up political support before the possible trial, including with a protest in Rio de Janeiro earlier this month. Local media said around 18,000 people attended, based on figures from a monitoring project linked to the University of Sao Paulo.

Bolsonaro’s allies had hoped to draw 1 million people. Some analysts have said his ability to mobilize voters is diminishing. He has called for a new demonstration on April 6 in Sao Paulo.

The former president and his allies also will push for Congress to grant amnesty to those in jail for their roles in the Jan. 8, 2023, riot.

Carlos Melo, a political science professor at Insper University in Sao Paulo, said he didn't expect Wednesday's decision to have much impact on next year's presidential election.

Bolsonaro has already been banned by Brazil’s top electoral court from running in elections until 2030 over abuse of power while in office and casting unfounded doubts on the country’s electronic voting system.

“Bolsonaro will claim he’s a candidate anyway. Why? To avoid being sidelined. He will claim it’s him, or someone he appoints. He doesn’t want to give up a political asset he has,” Melo said.

Associated Press journalists Gabriela Sá Pessoa in Rio de Janeiro and Mari Yamaguchi in Tokyo contributed to this report.

Brazil's former President Jair Bolsonaro speaks to the press at Congress in Brasilia, Brazil, Wednesday, March 26, 2025, after panel of Brazil Supreme Court justices accepted charges against him over an alleged attempt to stay in office after his 2022 election defeat. (AP Photo/Luis Nova)

Brazil's former President Jair Bolsonaro speaks to the press at Congress in Brasilia, Brazil, Wednesday, March 26, 2025, after panel of Brazil Supreme Court justices accepted charges against him over an alleged attempt to stay in office after his 2022 election defeat. (AP Photo/Luis Nova)

Brazil's former President Jair Bolsonaro speaks to the press at Congress in Brasilia, Brazil, Wednesday, March 26, 2025, after panel of Brazil Supreme Court justices accepted charges against him over an alleged attempt to stay in office after his 2022 election defeat. (AP Photo/Eraldo Peres)

Brazil's former President Jair Bolsonaro speaks to the press at Congress in Brasilia, Brazil, Wednesday, March 26, 2025, after panel of Brazil Supreme Court justices accepted charges against him over an alleged attempt to stay in office after his 2022 election defeat. (AP Photo/Eraldo Peres)

Brazil's former President Jair Bolsonaro speaks to the press at Congress in Brasilia, Brazil, Wednesday, March 26, 2025, after panel of Brazil Supreme Court justices accepted charges against him over an alleged attempt to stay in office after his 2022 election defeat. (AP Photo/Eraldo Peres)

A security agent stands near the statue of Lady Justice at the entrance of the Supreme Court before the start of the trial of Brazil's former President Jair Bolsonaro in Brasilia, Brazil, Tuesday, March 25, 2025. (AP Photo/Eraldo Peres)

A journalist, foreground, attends the trial of Brazil's former President Jair Bolsonaro, on the large screen behind, in an external area of the Supreme Court in Brasilia, Brazil, Tuesday, March 25, 2025. (AP Photo/Eraldo Peres)

FILE - Police stand on the other side of a window at Planalto Palace that was shattered by protesters, supporters of Brazil's former President Jair Bolsonaro, after they stormed the official workplace of the president in Brasilia, Brazil, Jan. 8, 2023. (AP Photo/Eraldo Peres, File)

The statue of Lady Justice stands outside the Supreme Court on the second day of the trial of Brazil's former President Jair Bolsonaro in Brasilia, Brazil, Wednesday, March 26, 2025. (AP Photo/Eraldo Peres)

Military police guard the Supreme Court on the second day of the trial of Brazil's former President Jair Bolsonaro in Brasilia, Brazil, Wednesday, March 26, 2025. (AP Photo/Eraldo Peres)

Brazil's former President Jair Bolsonaro speaks to the press as he arrives at the Brasilia International Airport in Brasilia, Brazil, Tuesday, March 25, 2025. (AP Photo/Luis Nova)

Journalists listen to Supreme Court Judge Alexandre de Moraes during the trial of former President Jair Bolsonaro as they follow the trial on a monitor from an external area of the Supreme Court building in Brasilia, Brazil, Tuesday, March 25, 2025. (AP Photo/Eraldo Peres)

A security agent guards the Supreme Court after the first day of former President Jair Bolsonaro's trial in Brasilia, Brazil, Tuesday, March 25, 2025. (AP Photo/Eraldo Peres)

Railings guard the Supreme Court after the first day of former President Jair Bolsonaro's trial in Brasilia, Brazil, Tuesday, March 25, 2025. (AP Photo/Eraldo Peres)

NEW YORK (AP) — Asian shares were sharply lower on Monday after another wipeout slammed Wall Street as build about a potentially toxic mix of worsening inflation and a U.S. economy slowing because households are afraid to spend due to the trade war.

U.S. futures and oil prices were lower.

Thailand’s SET lost 0.9% after a powerful earthquake centered in Myanmar rattled the region, causing widespread destruction in the country, also known as Burma, and less damage in places like Bangkok, though a high-rise office building under construction collapsed.

Tokyo’s benchmark fell nearly 3.9% to 35,691.52, while the Hang Seng in Hong Kong lost 1% to 23,200.65.

The Shanghai Composite index declined 0.5% to 3,333.66.

In South Korea, the Kospi fell 2.6% to 2,492.49, while Australia's S&P/ASX 200 sank 1.6% to 7,856.80.

Taiwan's Taiex lost 3.4%.

On Friday, the S&P 500 dropped 2% to 5,580.94, for one of its worst days in the last two years. It was its fifth losing week in the last six.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average sank 715 points, or 1.7%, to 41,583.90, and the Nasdaq composite fell 2.7% to 17,322.99.

Lululemon Athletica led the market lower with a drop of 14.2%, even though the seller of athletic apparel reported a stronger profit for the latest quarter than analysts expected.

Oxford Industries, the company behind the Tommy Bahama and Lilly Pulitzer brands, likewise reported stronger results for the latest quarter than expected but still saw its stock fall 5.7%.

One of the main worries hitting Wall Street is that President Donald Trump’s escalating tariffs may cause U.S. households and businesses to freeze their spending. Even if the tariffs end up being less painful than feared, all the uncertainty may filter into changed behaviors that hurt the economy.

A report on Friday showed all types of U.S. consumers are getting more pessimistic about their future finances. Two out of three expect unemployment to worsen in the year ahead, according to a survey by the University of Michigan. That’s the highest reading since 2009, and it raises worries about a job market that’s been a linchpin keeping the U.S. economy solid.

A separate report also raised concerns after it showed a widely followed, underlying measure of inflation was a touch worse last month than economists expected.

The Fed could return to cutting interest rates, like it was doing late last year, in order to give the economy and financial markets a boost. But such cuts would also push upward on inflation, which has been sticking above the Fed’s 2% target.

The economy and job market have been holding up so far, but if they were to weaken while inflation stays high, it would produce a worst-case scenario called “stagflation.” Policy makers in Washington have few good tools to fix it.

Some of Wall Street’s sharpest losses on Friday hit companies that need customers feeling confident enough to spend, and not just on yoga wear or beach clothes. Delta Air Lines lost 5%. Casino operator Caesars Entertainment dropped 5%. Domino’s Pizza sank 5.1%.

The heaviest weights on the market were Apple, Microsoft and other Big Tech stocks, whose massive sizes give their movements more sway over indexes. They and other stocks that had gotten caught up in the frenzy around artificial-intelligence technology have been among the hardest hit in Wall Street’s recent sell-off.

Their prices had shot up so much more quickly than their already fast-growing revenues and profits that critics said they looked too expensive.

On the flip side, among the relatively few rising stocks on Wall Street were those that can make money almost regardless of what the economy does, such as utilities. American Water Works rose 2.2%.

Stock markets worldwide will likely remain shaky as an April 2 deadline approaches for more tariffs. That’s what Trump has called “Liberation Day,” when he will roll out tariffs tailored to each of the United States’ trading partners.

In other dealings early Monday, U.S. benchmark crude oil lost 40 cents to $68.96 per barrel. Brent crude oil fell 36 cents to $72.40 per barrel.

The U.S. dollar fell to 148.86 Japanese yen from 149.84 yen. The euro rose to $1.0838 from $1.0803.

AP Business Writers Stan Choe and Matt Ott contributed.

A currency trader walks by the screens showing the foreign exchange rate between U.S. dollar and South Korean won, left, and the Korean Securities Dealers Automated Quotations (KOSDAQ) at a foreign exchange dealing room in Seoul, South Korea, Monday, March 31, 2025. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)

The screens showing the Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI), left, the foreign exchange rate between U.S. dollar and South Korean won and the Korean Securities Dealers Automated Quotations (KOSDAQ) are seen at a foreign exchange dealing room in Seoul, South Korea, Monday, March 31, 2025. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)

An electronic stock board shows that Nikkei stock average dropped over 1,500 Japanese yen in Tokyo Monday, March 31, 2025. (Kyodo News via AP)

A currency trader works under an electronic stock board at a foreign currency trading firm in Tokyo Monday, March 31, 2025. (Kyodo News via AP)