Former Air Force Chief Reveals Personal Cost of Blocking Bolsonaro’s 2022 Coup Plot

A Brazilian Lieutenant-Brigadier has publicly confirmed that his refusal to support a proposed military coup by former President Jair Bolsonaro cost him "many friendships," providing a key, first-hand account of the institutional checks that derailed the post-2022 election plot. Lieutenant-Brigadier Carlos de Almeida Baptista Junior, the former Commander of the Air Force (FAB), revealed in a new book that he rejected a draft decree presented by Bolsonaro’s defense minister, which aimed to annul the election results and prevent current President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva’s inauguration. The disclosure offers crucial insight into the resistance within the top ranks of the Brazil military and the resilience of the country's democratic institutions.

The former Air Force commander’s account details a late 2022 meeting where the draft coup decree was presented to the heads of the Army, Navy, and Air Force. Baptista Junior states he refused to even receive the document, declaring that the Air Force would not participate before leaving the meeting. His stand, coupled with the refusal of the then-Army Commander, General Marco Antônio Freire Gomes, was the decisive factor that prevented the coup attempt from moving forward, a conclusion later reached by investigators. Freire Gomes has also confirmed in testimony to the Federal Police (PF) that Jair Bolsonaro raised the possibility of an institutional rupture with military leaders, though the general denied a specific claim by Baptista Junior that he threatened to arrest the former president if he proceeded.

The former President and several of his political and military allies, including the former Navy commander, have since been convicted in a landmark legal process for attempting to overthrow democracy. The charges brought by the Prosecutor General’s Office (PGR) before the Supreme Federal Court (STF Brazil) accuse them of a "conspiratorial plot" armed against democratic institutions. For a foreign audience, the PGR acts as the country’s top federal prosecutor, while the STF is Brazil's highest court, responsible for constitutional interpretation and trying high-ranking federal officials. The court’s willingness to prosecute a former president and senior military figures for crimes of state highlights the institutional immune system’s response to the threat.

Baptista Junior’s motivation for writing the book, titled "I Said No! The Anti-Coup Bastion," stems from the fact that opinion polls suggest a significant portion of the population still does not believe a coup was attempted. The former commander writes that his rejection of the plot led to him being attacked on social media by officers aligned with the former President and being branded a "traitor" by some military personnel. His public testimony serves as a stark reminder of the internal struggle and risk taken by career officers who chose the constitutional chain of command over political loyalty.

The case against the conspirators continues, with the STF working through various appeals and related investigations. The next key focus for observers will be the testimony and potential criminal proceedings for other senior military figures implicated in the planning, and the broader institutional reforms being discussed to prevent the political hijacking of the armed forces in future election cycles.