Coup plot: arrests are maintained after custody hearing

The house arrests of eight people convicted of the coup plot were maintained this Saturday (27) after a hearing held by an assistant judge from the office of minister Alexandre de Moraes, of the Federal Supreme Court (STF).

The hearings were conducted by judge Luciana Yuki Fugishita Sorrentino and aimed to comply with a legal formality.

This morning, Moraes decreed the house arrest of ten convicts. The list of targets is made up of seven Army soldiers, a Federal Police delegate, the president of the Instituto Voto Legal, Carlos Cesar Moretzsohn Rocha and Filipe Martins, former international affairs advisor to former president Jair Bolsonaro.

Carlos Rocha was not found by the Federal Police and is considered a fugitive.

The house arrest warrant against Army lieutenant colonel, Guilherme Marques de Almeida, was also not carried out. He traveled to Bahia, but committed to returning to Goiânia and starting to comply with the measure.

House arrests were ordered by Alexandre de Moraes to prevent further escapes. This Friday (26), the former director of the Federal Highway Police (PRF) Silvinei Vasques was detained by local authorities after fleeing to Paraguay and trying to board a flight to El Salvador with a false passport.

Read more: What is known and what remains to be clarified about Silvinei Vasques’ escape

In Moraes’ understanding, there is a strategy for those convicted of coup acts to flee the country. The minister cited several cases of defendants escaping in the January 8th criminal proceedings, including that of former deputy Alexandre Ramagem.

“The modus operandi of the criminal organization condemned by the Federal Supreme Court indicates the possibility of planning and executing escapes outside the national territory, as done by the defendant Alexandre Ramagem, including with the help of third parties”, stated the minister.