Fri Apr 25 14:22:36 UTC 2025: ## Former Brazilian President Collor Arrested on Corruption Charges
**Maceió, Brazil** – Fernando Collor de Mello, Brazil’s 75-year-old former president, was arrested early Friday morning in Maceió, Alagoas, on corruption charges. The arrest follows a Supreme Court order to begin serving an eight-year, ten-month prison sentence for bribery and money laundering.
Collor, who was Brazil’s first popularly elected president after the military dictatorship, was convicted in 2023 for allegedly receiving $5.28 million in bribes from a Petrobras subsidiary. His lawyer, Marcelo Bessa, confirmed the arrest, stating Collor was apprehended while en route to Brasília to voluntarily surrender. The arrest comes after the Supreme Court rejected Collor’s appeals against the conviction.
This is not the first time Collor has faced legal trouble. He was impeached in 1992 on separate corruption charges, though later acquitted. Following his presidency, he served as a senator before an unsuccessful gubernatorial bid in 2023. His arrest adds to a list of Brazilian presidents since the end of military rule who have faced legal consequences, highlighting a pattern of legal challenges faced by several leaders. Currently, former President Jair Bolsonaro also faces legal proceedings regarding an alleged coup plot.
First Piper 