Brazil Senate hands pandemic probe to top prosecutor, few expect Bolsonaro charges

FILE PHOTO: Brazil's Economy Minister Paulo Guedes gestures near President Jair Bolsonaro during the launching ceremony of the National Green Growth Program, at the Planalto Palace in Brasilia, Brazil October 25, 2021. REUTERS/Adriano Machado/File Photo

RIO DE JANEIRO (Reuters) - A Brazilian Senate panel probing the government's pandemic response on Wednesday presented the prosecutor general's office with recommendations to criminally charge President Jair Bolsonaro for alleged errors that cost Brazilian lives.

Prosecutor General Augusto Aras was appointed by Bolsonaro in 2019 on the recommendation of conservative allies and is not expected https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/brazils-bolsonaro-should-face-homicide-charge-covid-19-errors-senate-report-2021-10-19 to charge him. Still, the opposition-controlled panel's damning report is unlikely to help the right-wing leader's flagging popularity heading into an election year.