The Argentine Government decided to grant refugee status to Joel Borges Correa, a supporter of former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro who was convicted in his country for the riots that occurred on January 8, 2023 in Brasilia. The resolution was adopted by the National Commission for Refugees (CONARE), an agency that operates under the authority of the Ministry of National Security
.
The decision allows him to remain in Argentina and avoid his extradition to Brazil, which had been ordered by federal judge Daniel Rafecas. In his country, Borges Correa faces a sentence of 13 and a half years in prison for crimes linked to the incidents recorded after the inauguration of Luiz Inácio Lula
da Silva. Daniel Rafecas requested extradition.
According to the official resolution, the agency evaluated the asylum request and concluded that there is a “well-founded fear of political persecution”. On this basis, the Executive decided to grant him the protection provided for in the Refugee Recognition and Protection Act
.
The case is part of the judicial case initiated in Brazil following the episodes of January 8, 2023, when demonstrators entered government buildings in the Plaza of the Three Powers in Brasilia. In this context, Brazilian justice advanced with multiple proscriptions and convictions
against Bolsonarist sympathizers.
Borges Correa told Argentine authorities that he entered the country on April 13, 2024 through the Bernardo de Irigoyen border crossing, in the province of Misiones, without being subject to immigration control. According to his testimony, he made that decision out of fear of being arrested.
The Brazilian citizen reported that he resided in the city of Tubarão, in the state of Santa Catarina, where he worked as a truck driver and lived with his wife and two children. During the interview with CONARE, he maintained that he had no active political militancy, although he was sympathetic to right-wing
positions.
According to his version, he traveled to Brasilia with other people to participate in a mobilization against Lula's government initiatives related to the decriminalization of abortion and the legalization of drugs. He stated that when he arrived in the area of the protests, the riots had already started. According to his account, he spent seven months in pre-trial detention in overcrowded conditions, sharing a cell with more people than allowed. He later received house arrest with an electronic ankle brace
.
The trial against him began in March 2024 and ended with a sentence of 13 and a half years in prison under titles such as “violent abolition of the democratic rule of law”, attempted coup d'etat, qualified harm and armed criminal association. The sentence was upheld by the Supreme Federal Court.
Joel Rafael Correa.
After being convicted, Borges Correa cut off his electronic ankle brace and escaped to Argentina with other people. He was arrested a short time later and transferred to the Ezeiza prison, where he remained waiting for his judicial situation to be resolved
.
With the CONARE decision, the Brazilian defense has already begun steps in federal courts to suspend the extradition process. If the process is successful, Borges Correa could regain his freedom and remain in Argentine territory under the protection of refugee status
