Former deputy Alexandre Ramagem is arrested by ICE, the US immigration service

Alexandre Ramagem was arrested by ICE, in the USA, when he was walking down the street. The United States Immigration and Customs Control Service (ICE) arrested former federal deputy Alexandre Ramagem (PL-RJ). The information was confirmed by the Federal Police to GloboNews. According to preliminary information, Ramagem was arrested in Orlando, Florida, and taken to a detention center in the city. Brazilian authorities were informed of the arrest around 12 pm (Brasília time). The former director of the Brazilian Intelligence Agency (Abin) was detained for immigration reasons, and the Brazilian government is awaiting more information about what the return process to Brazil will be like, according to the PF. “The arrest is the result of international cooperation between Brazil and the United States in the fight against organized crime. Ramagem is a fugitive from Brazilian justice and, according to US authorities, is in an irregular immigration situation”, said the corporation’s general director, Andrei Rodrigues. Ramagem left the country after being sentenced by the Federal Supreme Court (STF) to a sentence of 16 years in prison for an attempted coup d’état. He is accused of being part of the crucial core of the coup plot, which aimed to keep former president Jair Bolsonaro (PL) in power. MORE end of the trial, crossing the Roraima border with Guyana to avoid arrest, then heading to the United States. In January 2026, the Ministry of Justice informed the STF that the extradition request had been formally forwarded to the US government. The Brazilian Embassy in Washington sent the documentation to the US Department of State on December 30, 2025. Minister Alexandre de Moraes ordered the inclusion of Ramagem’s name on the Interpol list, which made it possible for him to be detained by foreign authorities. Allies of the former deputy said that Ramagem intended to request political asylum in the United States. While abroad, the former parliamentarian suffered administrative and political sanctions: On December 18, his mandate as a federal deputy was revoked by the Chamber of Deputies; The Chamber then canceled his diplomatic passport after his mandate was revoked; By order of the STF, the Chamber also blocked his parliamentary salaries. Who is Alexandre Ramagem? Alexandre Ramagem is a Federal Police delegate and Brazilian politician. He joined the Federal Police in 2005. He gained prominence when he headed Jair Bolsonaro’s security after the attack in Juiz de Fora, during the 2018 campaign. During the Bolsonaro administration, he was appointed to head the Brazilian Intelligence Agency. His management is the target of investigations into the use of the body’s structure to illegally monitor political opponents, in the case known as “Abin Paralela”. In 2020, Bolsonaro tried to appoint him Director General of the Federal Police, but the appointment was suspended by Minister Alexandre de Moraes (STF) due to Ramagem’s personal proximity to the president’s family. In 2022, he was elected by PL-RJ with around 59 thousand votes. His mandate was revoked by the Board of Directors of the Chamber in December 2025, after his criminal conviction in the coup plot. In 2024, he ran for Mayor of Rio de Janeiro in 2024, finishing the election in second place.

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