Flávio Bolsonaro’s alleged US flight attempt remains unconfirmed

Pilot Mauro Mattosinho said he received information from an unidentified Argentine airport employee that Senator Flávio Bolsonaro’s name appeared on a passenger list for a private jet waiting for takeoff at Puerto Iguazú airport in the early hours of Tuesday, October 27. The aircraft was reportedly scheduled to fly to the United States. According to Mattosinho, four passengers were expected on the flight, including Bolsonaro, and the field for his identification documents was left blank on the list.

The Gulfstream G400, registration LV-JQW and operated by Argentine company Baires Fly S.A., departed Buenos Aires at 10:14 p.m. on Monday and landed in Puerto Iguazú at 11:45 p.m. The city lies on the border with Foz do Iguaçu, Paraná, and its international airport is about 22 kilometers from the Brazilian border.

“There is no official confirmation that the senator left Brazil.”

Mattosinho said the plane was due to depart at 2 a.m. but remained on the ground at 7 a.m. He stated that three of the four passengers had arrived at the airport around 1:30 a.m., but documentation problems prevented departure. He did not say he saw Bolsonaro in person and provided no copy of the passenger list.

The Federal Police is investigating whether Bolsonaro left Brazil in defiance of a Supreme Federal Court order. As of publication, police had not confirmed his departure and said there are no records of him crossing regular Brazilian border checkpoints. An Argentine government spokesman denied that Flávio entered the country.

Argentine outlet Infobae originally reported that the defeated presidential candidate had crossed into Argentina to board a private jet bound for the United States. La Nación later cited Airport Security Police sources saying the flight had no scheduled destination and was canceled because one of the four passengers did not arrive on time. Iguazú Ahora subsequently reported the aircraft was to fly to Miami at 5 p.m., but airport authorities said Bolsonaro was not on the passenger list.

Bolsonaro’s allies have publicly denied that he crossed the border, while background reports in the press have acknowledged the alleged escape. The Federal Police investigation remains ongoing.