Brazilian police arrest five over plot to assassinate Lula after 2022 election win

Four military personnel and a police agent held on suspicion of plan to prevent inauguration of president

Brazil’s federal police have arrested four special forces military personnel and one of their own agents on suspicion of planning the assassination of Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva on 15 December 2022 to prevent his inauguration after his victory over the then president, far-right leader Jair Bolsonaro.

According to the police, the plot also included plans to assassinate the vice-president, Geraldo Alckmin, and the supreme court justice, Alexandre de Moraes, who at the time was already leading investigations into the so-called “hate cabinet,” as Bolsonaro mobs had become known.