The two explosions recorded this Wednesday in Brasilia, one in front of the Supreme Court and another next to the Chamber of Deputies, were caused by a suicide attack, as confirmed by the Brazilian Police.
A police spokesperson explained to local media that the attacker detonated an explosive, apparently homemade, next to a statue in front of the supreme court. Minutes later, a car parked near a building attached to the Chamber of Deputies suffered a second explosion, leading investigators to link the two incidents.
“The citizen approached the Supreme Federal Court, tried to enter, he did not succeed and the explosion occurred at the door,” said the governor of Brasilia, Celina Leão, at a press conference, who assured that for now it is not possible to determine the identity of the person because the body “still has artifacts on it.”
“We trust that he is a lone wolf,” he added.
The preliminary information is that it was a “suicide,” added the governor. “There are no injuries,” he said.
“We can confirm that there is a body in front of the Supreme Federal Court,” said a spokesperson for the Federal Police.
For his part, the general delegate of the Santa Catarina Civil Police, Ulisses Gabriel, indicated that the vehicle that exploded is in the name of Francisco Wanderley Luiz, known as Tiu Fraca, former candidate for councilor for the Liberal Party (led by Jair Bolsonaro ) in the 2020 elections in Río del Sur. However, authorities have not confirmed the identity of the deceased at this time.
At the site of the second explosion, local media were able to verify the remains of explosives and bricks in the trunk of the car. In addition, the attacker’s body was left partially mutilated on the ground in front of the Supreme Court.
Brazil’s attorney general, Jorge Messias, assured on social networks that the case will be investigated “rigorously and quickly.” Authorities cordoned off the area, which includes important government headquarters such as the Planalto Palace.
President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva was not at the presidential residence at the time of the explosions, a presidential spokesman said.
The president of the Supreme Court, Judge Luis Roberto Barroso, has contacted the Brazilian president to address the situation in front of the court headquarters. He has also spoken with the general director of the Federal Police, Andrei Rodrigues, and with Leao.
The Chamber of Deputies continued its sessions and was evacuated about two hours later, when the situation was safe to evacuate the legislators.
“I was at the stop and the man passed by (…) Out of nowhere I simply heard a noise, I looked back, at the moment of the noise, and fire and smoke came out. The security guards of the STF arrived,” Laiana Costa, administrative official of the Court of Accounts of the Union (TCU), told local media.
It should be remembered that the headquarters of the Supreme Court has already been the target of attacks in the past, specifically on January 8, 2023, when thousands of followers of former president Jair Bolsonaro broke into the building, as well as Congress and the Planalto palace, in a destabilization attempt against President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.
This Wednesday’s explosions took place before Brazil hosts the G20 leaders’ summit in Rio de Janeiro, on November 18 and 19.
On the 20th, Lula plans to receive his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping, in Brasilia.
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