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Andre Mendonca suspends Federal Police chiefs amid internal Supreme Court conflict

Brazilian Supreme Court Justice Andre Mendonca suspended Federal Police Chief Andrei Rodrigues and intelligence chief Leandro Almada on Tuesday. The decision followed a weeklong dispute between Mendonca and Justice Alexandre de Moraes over the impartiality of federal police intelligence reports. Mendonca accused the reports of being illegal, while de Moraes requested an investigation into Mendonca for possible abuse of authority and administrative misconduct. The conflict originated from messages released by Mendonca regarding a corruption scandal involving disgraced banker Daniel Vorcaro. The dispute has become a prominent campaign issue for presidential candidates Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva and Flavio Bolsonaro. While the administration of Lula da Silva has criticized the move as potentially electoral, Flavio Bolsonaro has used the suspension to argue that the prosecution of his father, Jair Bolsonaro, is a political witch-hunt. Supreme Court President Edson Fachin eventually intervened to suspend the conflicting orders from Mendonca and de Moraes, keeping Rodrigues in his position and halting Mendonca's investigation of de Moraes. Fachin ordered that any future inquiry involving a justice must be submitted to him first.

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