Federal Judge Daniel Rafecas has requested the arrest of 61 Brazilians who are living in Argentina and were convicted in Brazil for participating in the January 2023 storming of government buildings. Two of them have already been detained and were put in preventive custody in La Plata, Buenos Aires province.

A judicial source told the Herald that Interpol and Argentina’s Federal Police will now continue searching for the remaining 59 fugitives. Brazilian Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes issued an extradition order last month to the Justice Ministry, which later sent the request to the Argentine Foreign Ministry. Then, it was sent to the Argentine judiciary.

The wanted people are former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro supporters accused of attacking three federal government buildings in Brasilia on January 8, 2023. They were demanding the military take power and depose newly-elected President Lula Da Silva.

De Moraes has so far sentenced 226 people involved in the assault through the application of a 2022 legal figure called “crimes against the democratic rule of law.” Sentences are around 16 years imprisonment and cannot be appealed — they are being tried directly by Brazil’s Supreme Court. 

Some who were sentenced or indicted escaped their house arrest in Brazil and moved to Argentina. They were reportedly seeking safe harbor under President Javier Milei, who is close to Bolsonaro. According to official data, 181 Brazilians requested political asylum in Argentina in 2024 through the National Refugee Commission.

The fugitives speak out

Buenos Aires Province Police detained Joelton Gusmão de Oliveira on Thursday, who had been sentenced to a 17-year sentence in Brazil. They detained Rodrigo de Freitas Moro Ramalho — sentenced to 14 years — the next day. They were convicted of sedition against the constitutional order, aggravated damage, and illicit association. These charges are all recognized under Argentine law, a necessary condition to detain and extradite people, judicial sources told the Herald.

Gusmão de Oliveira and Ramalho both went to the migration office to renew their temporary residence (known as precaria) and were detained on the spot. They could spend up to two years in preventive detention until the extradition process is over. The process could be long since they could appeal their detention to Argentina’s Supreme Court.

“It’s absurd, a smokescreen to hide what’s going to happen to Alexandre de Moraes, because the United States is going to arrest him,” one of the Brazilian fugitives told the Herald. There are currently no legal processes against De Moraes in the U.S., only posts on X made by Elon Musk targeting the judge. 

The fugitive believes “without a doubt” that Milei is going to intercede to help them. “Milei knows about the cruelty of Alexandre de Moraes and the ‘de-convicted,’ corrupt Lula,” she added. However, Security Minister Patricia Bullrich told CNN Brazil on Saturday that the Argentine security forces will look for the fugitives. “It’s a court order that is being complied with,” she added.

Another fugitive said he was “calm” and would not leave Argentina, as he considered it “risky.” A third fugitive added he had not been convicted in Brazil yet, so he was not on the list of people to be extradited.

Eduardo Bolsonaro, a right-wing deputy and son of former president Jair, said the arrests were “made illegally by a judge linked to the Argentine radical left.” Bolsonaro added that he was “confident” that Milei and Foreign Minister Gerardo Werthein would see that the country’s laws would be respected, adding pressure to the Argentine government. 

Similarly, Brazilian lawyer Claudio Caivano, who represents some people being investigated over the 2023 riots, said the arrest warrants were politically motivated. However, he said he was “confident” in the Argentine justice system. 

“There are still judicial resources already being processed today,” he told the Herald.

Hernán Mirasole, an Argentine lawyer of one of the Brazilians, insists that his client is not a fugitive and is being “persecuted.” He told the Herald that the two Brazilians were not fleeing the country, so the preventive prison was not justified. He added that if he were in the same situation as some of the convicted Brazilians, he would not feel at ease.

“It’s a mistake to be calm, waiting for Milei to do something. He is going to let Rafecas do his bidding. And [Milei] comes from issuing an executive order that could harm refugees and refugee applicants,” he said.

A judicial source, meanwhile, told the Herald that the fact that Brazilians have requested political asylum does not prevent them from being arrested. The source explained that they were arrested because they were convicted with a final sentence, which they sought to avoid by fleeing the country.