A mystery is unfolding around a close ally of President Donald Trump who is reportedly headed to the United States after suffering a stunning election defeat in Brazil.
Brazilian Sen. Flávio Bolsonaro, who unexpectedly lost the presidential election to incumbent Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, is traveling to the U.S. after failing to surrender his passports as ordered by Brazil’s Supreme Court, two sources told CNN.
CNN senior White House reporter Kevin Liptak described the development as a “strange story,” noting that Bolsonaro’s whereabouts had remained “a mystery” for several days.
“He has been under investigation by the Supreme Court,” Liptak reported Tuesday. “The Supreme Court had asked him to turn in his passports by yesterday, so by Monday. He didn’t do that.”
Bolsonaro, who denies wrongdoing, reportedly feared arrest amid an investigation into alleged corruption, money laundering and currency evasion.
Liptak raised questions about whether Trump, who has suggested Brazil’s election may have been rigged, could offer his political ally protection.
“The real question now is whether Bolsonaro will be seeking some kind of asylum from the Trump administration,” Liptak said, also questioning whether the White House might have helped facilitate his departure.
The reporter pointed to a striking family precedent involving Bolsonaro’s father, former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro, who also traveled to the United States after losing an election to Lula.
“Actually, while he was in the U.S., he was a guest at various points at Mar-a-Lago,” Liptak noted Tuesday.
The elder Bolsonaro later returned to Brazil, where he was sentenced to 27 years in prison.
“What happens next, I think, is a little unclear,” Liptak said.
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