Former Brazilian Intelligence Chief Detained By ICE In Florida

Authored by Charis Summers via The Epoch Times,

Alexandre Ramagem, a former chief of the Brazilian intelligence agency and a close ally of former President Jair Bolsonaro, has been detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers in Orlando, Florida.

Ramagem was chief of the ABIN intelligence agency from 2019 until 2022, when he was elected to the Chamber of Deputies, representing Bolsonaro’s Liberal Party.

In September 2025, he was sentenced to 16 years in prison for his role in an attempted coup in 2023 by Bolsonaro supporters. His congressional seat was later declared vacant. Brazilian authorities said Ramagem fled the South American nation before he would have started serving his sentence.

Brazil’s federal police said in an April 13 statement that a “fugitive of the country’s justice was arrested” in Orlando, but did not mention Ramagem by name. Police said the unnamed fugitive was recently sentenced by the country’s top court for the same three counts as Ramagem’s conviction.

“The arrest stemmed from international police cooperation between the Federal Police and U.S. law enforcement authorities,” Brazilian authorities said. “The prisoner is considered a fugitive from Brazilian justice after conviction for the crimes of armed criminal organization, coup d’état and attempted violent abolition of the rule of law.”

The Epoch Times reached out to ICE and Immigrex, a visa consultation service and law firm representing Ramagem, for comment, but did not receive a response by publication time.

Bolsonaro was convicted and sentenced to 27 years in jail in September 2025.

‘Traffic Infraction’

Ramagem appeared as “in custody” in ICE’s online detainee database on April 13. The Epoch Times was unable to verify the reason for Ramagem’s arrest, or whether it was related to Brazil’s request to extradite him.

In an April 13 post on X, Paulo Figueiredo, ​a Bolsonaro ally who lives in Florida, said Ramagem was ‌detained after a “minor traffic infraction” in Orlando, and then referred to ICE.

“Ramagem’s status is LEGAL: he has a pending asylum application, filed some time ago and still under review, which allows him to remain lawfully in the United States until a final decision is made in the case,” Figueiredo said.

Brazilian senator and presidential candidate Flávio Bolsonaro in Grapevine, Texas, at the Conservative Political Action Conference on March 28, 2026. The Epoch Times

Bolsonaro’s son, Flávio, who is also a Brazilian senator, said in an April 13 post on X that Ramagem “has a pending asylum application, is well supported legally, and there is an expectation that he will be released soon.”

Brazil is due to hold presidential elections in October 2026, with the winner taking office in January 2027.

The trials of Bolsonaro and Ramagem stemmed from the aftermath of the 2022 Brazilian presidential election, which included attacks on government buildings by Bolsonaro’s supporters.

Bolsonaro and his aides denied any involvement and said that they were the target of political persecution under the administration of his former competitor, Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, or Lula.

During Bolsonaro’s trial, U.S. President Donald Trump referred to it as a “witch hunt” and said Bolsonaro was not guilty of anything, except having fought for the people.

Former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro (2nd L) greets supporters next to his wife Michelle Bolsonaro during a rally in Sao Paulo, Brazil, on Feb. 25, 2024. Nelson Almeida/AFP via Getty Images

Bolsonaro started his prison sentence in November but was released to house arrest last month after suffering a bout of pneumonia.

In an April 13 post on X, Jorge Seif Júnior, who sits in the Brazilian federal senate, said Ramagem’s detention is “another case of political persecution in Brazil.”

“Today I formally submitted to the U.S. Embassy in Brasilia Official Letter No. 013/2026, presenting the relevant arguments regarding the detention, by ICE, of Brazilian Federal Police officer and Congressman Alexandre Ramagem,” he wrote. “This is yet another case of political persecution in Brazil, as seen with Jair Bolsonaro and Eduardo Bolsonaro. In light of this, I advocate for the granting of political asylum. ”

Lula, on April 14, called ‌on Ramagem to return to Brazil to serve his sentence.

“I believe Ramagem will come back to Brazil, he ​has to come ​back to serve his sentence,” Lula ‌said ⁠in an interview with local media.