The Military Police of the Federal District in Brasilia, the country's capital, are conducting a sweep this Thursday morning (14) of the Três Poderes square – the place where the Supreme Court, the presidential palace and the Congress – that was the target of an explosives attack on Wednesday night (13).
At around 7:30 p.m. on Wednesday, at least two explosions occurred in the Três Poderes square. The first occurred in the car of Francisco Wanderley Luiz, suspected of being responsible for the attacks, parked near the Chamber of Deputies. The explosives appear to have been triggered remotely.
The second, which caused the death of one person, took place near the STF building. The person – apparently Luiz – tried to enter the building but was barred. From that moment on, there is still no confirmation about the exact actions, but there was another explosion, which caused the death of the victim.
In a statement, the STF said, "Two loud bangs were heard at the end of the session, and the ministers were safely removed from the building." "Servants and collaborators were also removed as a precautionary measure," it added.
The Federal District Civil Police reported that "officers from the 5th Police Station are at the scene of the explosion of an artifact in front of the Supreme Federal Court on Wednesday night (13). The Federal District Military Police has taken the first investigative steps, and the forensics team has been called to the scene".
The explosions in Brazil's capital were caused by Francisco Wanderley Luiz, a right-wing council candidate who was a candidate for councilor in the city of Rio do Sul, Santa Catarina, in the 2020 elections, just getting 98 votes and was not elected.
Previously, Luiz announced the attacks on social media: he posted prints of conversations with himself on WhatsApp in which he uses bomb emojis and "challenges" the Federal Police to "defuse the bomb that is in the communists' house." In a threatening tone, the post mentions the attack between November 13 and 16.
In other posts, Luiz showed photos of himself visiting the STF building in August this year.
No more amnesty debate
Activities at the Supreme Federal Court (STF, in Portuguese) and the Chamber of Deputies were suspended until midday. On the other hand, the Senate has decided to cancel its working hours. There is still no information on whether President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva's schedule will be maintained.
The police are also investigating this morning at the house in Ceilândia region where Francisco Wanderley Luiz rented a few days ago, according to the Brazilian channel TV Globo. According to the vehicle, explosive devices were found there, as well as Wanderley's driver's license.
An investigation by columnist Natureza Nery from the G1 online news points out that shortly after the first details of the attack were released, ministers from the Supreme Federal Court (STF) ed of Congress with the message that they would not allow the debate on amnesty for those responsible for the coup acts of January 8, 2023, to move forward.
According to the outlet, the same message was sent via phone to the chamber's most influential leaders, and the signal given to parliamentarians was zero tolerance.
The Federal Police, in addition to the Military Police of the Federal District, is also investigating the attack. They will forward an inquiry to STF Minister Alexandre de Moraes, the rapporteur of the investigation into the January 8 acts.
