Comparisons · Statement × document
Bolsonaro: 'our security people in Rio' (meeting of April 22, 2020) × explanation to the Federal Police (PF) (2021)
What was said diverges from what a document records.
What was said
“Já tentei trocar gente da segurança nossa no Rio de Janeiro, oficialmente, e não consegui! E isso acabou. Eu não vou esperar foder a minha família toda, de sacanagem, ou amigos meu, porque eu não posso trocar alguém da segurança na ponta da linha que pertence a estrutura nossa. Vai trocar! Se não puder trocar, troca o chefe dele! Não pode trocar o chefe dele? Troca o ministro! E ponto final!”
Jair Bolsonaro, April 22, 2020 · Speech · Ministerial meeting at the Planalto Palace; transcript released by the Supreme Federal Court (STF) on May 22, 2020 and reproduced by Poder360 · context and source
What happened afterward
- November 3, 2021. To the Federal Police (PF), according to the news report, Bolsonaro said he was referring to a unit of the GSI responsible for his and his family's security, not to the Rio PF.
“Que, portanto, quando disse que queria trocar gente no Rio, referia-se a sua segurança pessoal e da sua família” source
source - March 2022. In its first report, the Federal Police (PF) concluded that it found no proof of interference; the report was not read here (secondary source). source
- October 16, 2025. The Supreme Federal Court (STF) reopened the inquiry, at the request of the Office of the Prosecutor General (PGR), for further investigative steps; the PGR considered it essential to verify whether there had been "interference or attempts at interference in the investigations, using the structure of the State." source
How they explained it
“Que, portanto, quando disse que queria trocar gente no Rio, referia-se a sua segurança pessoal e da sua família”
Jair Bolsonaro, November 3, 2021 · context and source
The excerpt from the meeting does not mention the Federal Police (PF), the Rio superintendency, or Moro's name. Moro stated in testimony that, at the meeting, Bolsonaro demanded the replacement of the Rio superintendency and of the director-general; Bolsonaro told the PF he was talking about his personal security. The comparison records both readings without deciding between them; the decision lies with the Supreme Federal Court (STF). Status as of October 24, 2026: inquiry reopened on October 16, 2025; the latest news found on its progress is from April 12, 2026.
Sources of the events
In testimony to the PF (November 3, 2021), according to the report, Bolsonaro said he was referring to a small GSI unit responsible for the security of himself and his family and that he wanted to improve the monitoring of his son Carlos; he was not talking about a PF superintendency.
Excerpt: “referia-se a sua segurança pessoal e da sua família”
Source: Bolsonaro diz que sugeriu mudança na PF do Rio porque Estado é 'complicado' — Poder360, Nov. 4, 2021 · paragraphs on the April 22 meeting · open original ↗
News report · full text examined · accessed on Oct. 24, 2026
Limitations: Original record not examined. The PF asked whether the statement referred to the PF in Rio; the PF's final conclusion on the point was not read.
In March 2022 the PF concluded that Bolsonaro did not interfere in the force and recommended closing the case; the report states that 18 people were heard and that no consistent evidence was found.
Excerpt: “Nenhuma prova consistente para a subsunção penal foi encontrada.”
Source: Moraes pede que PGR avalie arquivamento de inquérito contra Bolsonaro — Agência Brasil (EBC, a public company), May 17, 2024 · quotation from the report · open original ↗
News report · full text examined · accessed on Oct. 24, 2026
Limitations: Report (Poder360 attachment, March 2022) not read. Agência Brasil dates the PGR's request for closure to 2020; Poder360 dates it to September 19, 2022 — Poder360's date prevails (the outlet that links the PDF of the request).
On October 16, 2025 the STF reported that Moraes granted a PGR request and reopened the investigations in Inq 4831; the PGR, which in September 2022 had asked for closure, said on October 15, 2025 that the case file indicates the need for complementary measures.
Excerpt: “a análise dos autos indica a necessidade de diligências complementares”
Source: A pedido da PGR, STF reabre investigações sobre suposta interferência de Jair Bolsonaro na PF — Supreme Federal Court (news portal), Oct. 16, 2025 · text of the news item · open original ↗
Official document (primary) · full text examined · accessed on Oct. 24, 2026
Limitations: STF news item read; order not read.