Facing criminal probe, Bolsonaro flees Brazil, lands in Miami after election loss

Milena Malaver and Syra Ortiz Blanes, Miami Herald on Oct 28, 2026

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MIAMI — Brazilian Sen. Flávio Bolsonaro landed in Miami on Wednesday morning, days after losing the presidential election in his country, after the United States agreed to grant him an entry visa as he faces a criminal investigation in Brazil.

The senator, the eldest son of former President Jair Bolsonaro, lost Sunday’s presidential election to leftist incumbent Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, who won about 52% of the vote to Bolsonaro’s 48%. His father was sentenced to 27 years in prison for attempting a coup after losing the 2022 election to Lula da Silva.

Argentina’s immigration agency confirmed on social media that Bolsonaro, his wife and two daughters crossed into Argentina with valid travel documents and without issue. The family then boarded a private plane to Guayaquil, Ecuador. The agency reported that they traveled with Baires Fly S.A., a private company.

A flight from Guayaquil landed at Opa-Locka Executive Airport at 9:24 a.m. Eastern time Wednesday, according to FlightAware.

The arrival came after Brazilian Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes, who also oversaw proceedings against the senator’s father, gave Flávio Bolsonaro 24 hours on Monday to surrender his passports and barred him from leaving Brazil.

After the deadline passed, Brazil’s Federal Police canceled his travel documents, including his diplomatic passport, according to Agência Brasil. Bolsonaro had publicly denied plans to leave Brazil.

“I never thought about leaving the country,” he said in a video posted Monday, according to Brazilian and international news reports.

Argentina, Ecuador and the United States, all led by conservative presidents, were involved in the escape of Bolsonaro, himself a conservative political leader.

Bolsonaro is also an Italian national, according to the Italian news site la Republicca. The Italian consulate in Coral Gables told the Miami Herald it could not provide any information Wednesday morning and referred reporters to the consul’s office. The consul’s office did not immediately confirm whether Bolsonaro and his family had sought diplomatic assistance or visited their facilities on Wednesday.

A State Department official told The Associated Press on Tuesday that Bolsonaro and his family would be granted U.S. visas following his election loss.

The State Department did not immediately respond to Herald’s questions about which visa it granted Bolsonaro and his family and whether he entered the country on his Italian passport. But his high-profile entry into the United States comes as President Donald Trump carries out mass deportations and strips hundreds of thousands of people of their legal permission to be in the country.

The Trump administration has emphasized a zero-tolerance policy toward immigrants who commit crimes. Bolsonaro is currently under investigation in Brazil on suspicion of money laundering.

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