Brazil's Supreme Court unsealed documents on Friday revealing that Senator Flavio Bolsonaro, a leading right-wing presidential candidate, is under investigation for corruption, money laundering and tax evasion.
The probe was opened in July by Supreme Court Justice Andre Mendonca at the request of federal police. It centres on Flavio Bolsonaro's alleged ties to Daniel Vorcaro, the former head of failed lender Banco Master.
Vorcaro was arrested in March and stands accused of engineering one of the largest fraud scandals in Brazilian history. Federal police estimate the fraud at roughly $2.3 billion, with around 800,000 bank clients among its victims.
According to court documents, investigators are seeking to establish whether Flavio Bolsonaro engaged in corruption, money laundering and tax evasion in connection with Vorcaro.
Police said data extracted from Vorcaro's cellphone showed he transferred approximately $12 million to a US-based fund linked to Flavio Bolsonaro's brother, Eduardo Bolsonaro, in 2025. The money was allegedly intended for the 2026 film Dark Horse, which portrays their father, former President Jair Bolsonaro, in a flattering light.
A screenshot included in the court documents also suggests that Eduardo, a former Brazilian legislator, advised Vorcaro on managing the US-based funds. Investigators are seeking to identify the origin of the funds, the companies that made the transfers and the ultimate beneficiaries.
Eduardo Bolsonaro denied the allegations. "They want to frame this as bribe money, which it isn't," he said on Friday. "That's a lie." He said the transfers were intended to shield the funds from interference by Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes.
Allegations of ties between Flavio Bolsonaro and Vorcaro first emerged in May, when publication Intercept Brasil published leaked messages between the two. Flavio Bolsonaro has denied wrongdoing, saying he was simply seeking private investment for his father's film.
The investigation came to light after Chief Justice Edson Fachin ordered the full Banco Master case to be unsealed this week, releasing thousands of pages of court records.
The Supreme Court has itself been drawn into the scandal. Justice Mendonca, one of Jair Bolsonaro's judicial appointees, unsealed on September 1 a series of documents purporting to show Vorcaro seeking advice from Justice de Moraes. De Moraes responded by accusing Mendonca of abusing his position by unsealing those documents and seeking a private audience with Vorcaro without prosecutors or police present. The court is set to decide whether to launch an investigation into de Moraes next week.
De Moraes oversaw the 2025 criminal case against Jair Bolsonaro, who was sentenced to 27 years in prison for plotting an attempted coup. He also participated in a separate case that resulted in Eduardo Bolsonaro's conviction for soliciting foreign interference in Brazil's politics.
The scandal is unfolding weeks before the October 4 general election, in which Flavio Bolsonaro is challenging incumbent President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva. Pre-election polls suggest neither candidate is likely to secure an outright majority, with the race expected to head to a run-off.
Both candidates have called for full transparency. "Investigate everything and everyone with transparency," Flavio Bolsonaro said at a campaign event on Friday. "Show it to the press, show it to the people. Let's see who is right."
In a television interview on Thursday, Lula likewise called for a full probe. "Investigate everything, disclose everything, regardless of who it hurts," he said.
Parts of the case, including the probe into Senator Bolsonaro, remain sealed as the police investigation continues.
