Dozens of audios reveal high-ranking Brazilian officers pressured Bolsonaro to stage a coup

SAO PAULO (AP) — A trove of leaked audio recordings from late 2022 reveal high-ranking members of Brazil 's army discussing efforts to pressure then-President Jair Bolsonaro to carry out a coup and remain in power.

The 53 audios, obtained by the Federal Police and accessed by The Associated Press on Monday, provide a rare chance to hear military members expressing in their own voices their desire to keep leftist Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva from taking office.

Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes, who oversees the police's sprawling investigation, quoted some of those audios in his ruling last week ordering the arrest of five people for plotting the assassination of then-President-elect Lula in 2022 and then attempting to oust him from power on Jan. 8, 2023, when Bolsonaro supporters destroyed government buildings in capital Brasilia.

Audios from one former army officer — who was not among those de Moraes ordered arrested last week — are particularly supportive of a coup, and weren't referenced in de Moraes' order.

Col. Roberto Raimundo Criscuoli, a former subcommander of the army's special forces, told retired Brig. Gen. Mario Fernandes, who was then second in command at the general secretary of the presidency, that the far-right leader had a clear choice after Lula won his third, non-consecutive term.

“It will be either a civil war now or civil war later. We have a justification now for civil war; people are on the streets, we have massive support,” Criscuoli said in one of the audios. “Let's do this now. Speak to 01.”

01 is a common reference to Brazil's president.

Neither the former president nor his ministers are heard speaking in the recordings. The audios are not directly related to the Nov. 21 formal accusation by Brazil's police that Bolsonaro and 36...