Jair Bolsonaro from Brazil has applied for a 6-month visa to stay in the US.

Former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro has applied for a six-month visa to stay in the US as his home country continues to investigate whether he was partially responsible for last month’s attack on the capital’s Brasília buildings.

Bolsonaro left Brazil for Florida on December 30, two days before the inauguration of his rival, leftist Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, and a week before his supporters rioted in Brazil, claiming without proof that Bolsonaro’s re-election defeat was rigged.

Analysts say Bolsonaro most likely entered the US on a special A-1 visa reserved for heads of state. Such a visa would expire by default on Tuesday, 30 days after the end of his presidential term.

AG Immigration Group, a California firm known for its work with Brazilians, confirmed to NPR that it represents Bolsonaro as an immigration client and that the former president is seeking a six-month visa.

Bolsonaro is likely to remain in the country while his application is being considered, which could take months.

Brazilian Supreme Court investigates unrest over electoral fraud

Bolsonaro lost all legal immunity as a politician when his term expired on 1 January.

Two weeks later, on January 13, Brazil’s Supreme Court launched a formal investigation into Bolsonaro’s possible “incitement and intellectual authorship of anti-democratic actions that lead to vandalism and violence in Brazil,” according to a prosecutor’s statement released by Reuters.

Bolsonaro easily condemned the actions of his supporters. stating that breaking into public buildings is not the same as peaceful protests. He also stated that he was not responsible for what happened.

But for months, Bolsonaro refused to admit defeat in the elections and continued to maintain the belief that Brazil’s e-voting system was prone to fraud, even as growing terrorist threats stymied the country.

The investigation into the death penalty attacks is just the latest investigation into Bolsonaro’s conduct. Charges leveled against the former president in at least four different investigations range from using federal police to protect his sons to hiding a disinformation troll farm in his own office.

Democrats pressure Biden to send Bolsonaro home

Living in the US kept him several steps ahead of legal danger.

For a month, he resides in a Florida home owned by a Brazilian mixed martial artist in the gated community of Orlando near Disney World.

Reports and pictures posted on social media show him living like a local, roaming supermarkets, munching on Kentucky fried chicken and going to the hospital for an old stab wound.

But he is still a person of international interest. Twice a day, he goes outside his residence to greet the crowd of people who have gathered across the street, often dressed in Brazilian flags and speaking Portuguese.

Bolsonaro’s retreat raises questions from US legislators. Earlier this month, more than 40 Democrats in the House of Representatives signed a letter to President Biden saying the US “should not grant safe haven” to Bolsonaro, especially given his ideological links to the January 6 attack on the US Capitol.

“Two years ago, the United States faced a similar attack on our democracy,” the letter said. “We know firsthand the consequences—both immediate and long-term—when government officials undermine democratic norms, spread disinformation, and foment violent extremism.”

Bolsonaro’s son says ex-president has no firm plans to return

The US State Department did not immediately respond to NPR’s latest request for information on Bolsonaro’s visa status and denied previous requests.

The US does not need a legal reason to revoke or deny an alien’s visa.

John Feely, who was ambassador to Panama during the presidential extradition case, told NPR earlier this month that “there’s nothing stopping Biden from telling Bolsonaro, ‘You have to come out in 24 hours.’

According to Fili, the decision to keep Bolsonaro in the US could be related to security. Sending Bolsonaro home at the wrong time could spark even more violence among his supporters.

Bolsonaro’s son, Flavio Bolsonaro, who is also a sitting senator, told local reporters Saturday that his father had no firm plans to return home, according to several reporters present.

“It might be tomorrow, it might be in six months, it might never come back,” he said. “He has absolutely no fear because he is not responsible for what happened in Brazil.”

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