By Salma El-Sakka
Defeated Brazilian presidential candidate Flávio Bolsonaro has arrived in the United States hours after Brazil's Supreme Court cancelled his passports, sources told the BBC. The right-wing senator left Brazil amid an investigation into alleged money laundering, though he has not been charged and denies the allegations.
Passport cancellation and departure
On Monday, the Supreme Court ordered Bolsonaro to surrender his passports within 24 hours as part of the money laundering probe. After he missed the deadline, his passports were cancelled on Tuesday, prompting speculation he had left the country. His lawyers said they were "completely in the dark" about his whereabouts.
Meeting with brother in Florida
Sources confirmed to BBC Brasil and BBC Mundo that Bolsonaro met with his younger brother, Eduardo Bolsonaro, in Florida. Eduardo, who lives in Texas, was in Miami on election day. The exact travel route from Brazil to the US remains unclear, and it is unknown who accompanied Flávio or whether he intends to stay in the US.
US visa approval
A senior US official confirmed the State Department would issue visas to Bolsonaro and his family, allowing them entry. The BBC has contacted the White House, State Department, and embassies in both countries for comment.
Election defeat and ongoing investigations
Bolsonaro, 45, lost Sunday's presidential run-off to incumbent Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, who won 51.79% of the vote to Bolsonaro's 48.21%. Despite trailing by 4.4 million votes, Bolsonaro has not conceded and has called for the election to be annulled, citing a two-hour polling extension he called a "dirty trick." His party, the Liberal Party, has accepted the result.
Beyond the money laundering probe, Bolsonaro faces a separate inquiry into alleged links to a Brazilian lawyer accused of laundering more than $1 billion through a fraud scheme. Police say he had access to bank accounts of a company owned by the lawyer. The Supreme Court also ordered an examination of his electoral campaign over alleged foreign funding.
His father, former President Jair Bolsonaro, was convicted of plotting a coup and is under house arrest.
