SAO PAULO - Former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro has been indicted by the country's Federal Police on charges of money laundering and criminal association. The indictment stems from allegations that the far-right leader received undeclared diamonds from Saudi Arabia during his time in office, according to anonymous sources familiar with the matter.

While the specific crimes for which Bolsonaro has been indicted have not been disclosed, a second source has confirmed the existence of the indictment. Both officials spoke on the condition of anonymity due to their lack of authorization to speak publicly. The police report containing the indictment has yet to be submitted to Brazil's Supreme Court.

If the prosecutor-general, Paulo Gonet, decides to proceed with charges based on his analysis of the document, Bolsonaro will face trial. This represents the second indictment for the former president since leaving office. The first, in May, accused him of falsifying his COVID-19 vaccination certificate. However, this latest indictment poses a more severe legal threat to Bolsonaro, garnering praise from his opponents while being denounced as political persecution by his supporters.

Bolsonaro and his legal team have consistently denied any wrongdoing in relation to both this case and other ongoing investigations. Another investigation is examining his alleged involvement in inciting an uprising in the capital, Brasilia, on January 8, 2023, which aimed to oust his successor from power.

Last year, the Federal Police initially accused Bolsonaro of attempting to smuggle diamond jewelry worth $3 million into the country and selling two luxury watches. The investigation revealed that Bolsonaro had received cash from the sale of these watches, which were gifts from Saudi Arabia. Brazilian law requires citizens to declare goods worth over $1,000 when arriving from abroad and pay tax on any amount exceeding the exemption. However, the jewelry, had it been a gift from Saudi Arabia to Brasil, would have been exempt from taxes and added to the presidential collection.

Mauro Cid, Bolsonaro's former aide-de-camp who allegedly falsified his COVID-19 records, sold a Rolex and a Patek Philippe watch to a store in the U.S for a total of $68,000 in June 2022. These watches had been gifted to him by the Saudi government in 2019. Cid later reached a plea bargain agreement with authorities, confessing to the transactions.

Flávio Bolsonaro, the former president's eldest son and a sitting senator, reacted to his father's indictment on X, describing it as blatant and shameless persecution. Alongside Bolsonaro, ten others, including Cid and two lawyers, Frederick Wassef and Fábio Wajngarten, have also been indicted, according to one of the sources. Wassef claimed not to have had access to the final investigation report and criticized the selective leaks to the press, reminding that the investigation should be proceeding under seal. Wajngarten asserted that the police have found no evidence against him and accused them of wanting to punish him for his unwavering defense of Bolsonaro.

Despite the legal challenges, Bolsonaro still enjoys strong support among his political base. Demonstrating this, thousands of supporters took to the streets in February to protest what they perceive as political persecution. Conversely, his critics, particularly members of President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva's political party, have welcomed the progress of the investigations and demanded Bolsonaro's arrest.

The indictment comes on the heels of a previous ruling by Brazil's top electoral court, which declared that Bolsonaro abused his presidential powers during his 2022 reelection campaign, rendering him ineligible for any elections until 2030. The case centered on a meeting where Bolsonaro used government resources to claim that the country's electronic voting system was rigged.

This weekend, Bolsonaro is scheduled to meet with Argentinian President Javier Milei at a conservative conference in Balneario Camboriu, located in Brazil's south.