US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Argentine President Javier Milei are believed to be the masterminds behind the sophisticated and controversial intelligence operation that allowed Flavio Bolsonaro to flee Brazil and reach Florida, first by crossing into Argentina on foot and then boarding a flight to the US from Ecuador. This incident threatens to spark a storm against the governments of Washington and Buenos Aires. "A masterful move. Flavio is traveling to the United States as part of an operation coordinated by Marco Rubio with the support of President Milei," Mexican lawyer Simon Levy, a figure close to Bolsonaro who describes himself on social media as "in the service of President Trump and the MAGA camp," wrote in the last few hours on X.

Indeed, there was no shortage of spy story elements in the daring escape of the ultraconservative leader, under investigation in his homeland for money laundering and tax evasion and already ordered by Brazilian justice not to leave the country. Twenty-four hours of misdirection, including misleading statements, ghost planes, secret services, and border posts in the middle of the jungle, were all part of the story. "I've seen a lot of false and contradictory news in the press. Some have even been attributed to foreign authorities," said Paulo Figueiredo, a Brazilian digital influencer and political commentator closely linked to the Bolsonaro family, who is also a fugitive from justice in Brazil and a refugee in the US.

"What I can say right now is that Flavio Bolsonaro is well, safe, and resting with his family. We will hold a press conference in Miami; the time and location will be announced later," he added. Among the various details that have emerged about the escape is one regarding the private jet used by Bolsonaro. The Gulfstream G400, registration LV-JQW, belongs to the private company Baires Fly, itself linked to one of the major corruption scandals currently involving the Argentine government of Javier Milei. The company is involved in the investigation into money laundering from alleged bribes in the purchase of medicines and supplies by the Argentine National Agency for the Disabled (ANDIS).

This is the investigation conducted by Argentine prosecutor Franco Picardi, who identified the real owner of Baires Fly, entrepreneur Sergio Mastropietro, as the mastermind behind the "laundering of funds resulting from the surcharges applied to purchases made by the agency," led by Milei's then-lawyer, Diego Spagnuolo. Milei himself used one of the company's aircraft for his first international trip to the United States in 2023, sparking controversy, partly because the private flight was financed by entrepreneur Gerardo Werthein, later appointed Argentine ambassador to Washington. This sparked opposition to the Milei government. "This facilitated flight is one of the most serious episodes since the return to democracy and affects our country's relations with Brazil," wrote Agustín Rossi, leader of the Peronist group in the Chamber of Deputies, in X.

For Maxi Ferraro, a member of parliament for the centrist Civic Coalition party, the gravity of the affair lies in the provision of "operational assistance to a fugitive with state resources, as part of an alleged intelligence operation." This incident, he added, "jeopardizes bilateral relations with our main trading partner and compromises our ties with Mercosur." Controversy has also erupted in the US, where Democratic Congressman Jim McGovern has attacked Rubio for aiding "a foreign citizen under criminal investigation": "Rubio is in cahoots with him to evade justice. Once upon a time, cowardly fascists and authoritarian thugs fled to Russia or Saudi Arabia to avoid accountability. This administration, instead, welcomes them to America. Disgusting."

(Unioneonline)

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