Brazil’s escalating Supreme Court crisis intensified on Tuesday, September 8, 2026, after Justice Andre Mendonca ordered the suspension of Federal Police Director General Andrei Rodrigues and the agency’s intelligence chief, Leandro Almada.
Mendonca cited what he described as the alleged illegal production of intelligence reports that were later publicised by fellow Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes.
The decision marks a dramatic escalation in an increasingly bitter dispute within Brazil’s highest court, where justices are already considering whether to investigate two of their colleagues over separate allegations of misconduct.
Mendonca last week released a report questioning alleged contacts between Moraes and a banker accused of heading a multibillion dollar fraud scheme. The disclosure prompted calls for an investigation into Moraes.
Moraes subsequently sought an investigation into Mendonca for alleged abuse of authority, relying on Federal Police reports that Mendonca has since challenged as unlawful.
In his ruling, Mendonca said the circumstances surrounding the intelligence reports were sufficiently serious to warrant immediate intervention.
He argued that the alleged conduct threatened the independence of judicial and law enforcement institutions and could interfere with the ability of judges, the solicitor general and police officials to perform their constitutional duties without what he described as “illegal constraints.”
The Federal Police had not immediately responded to requests for comment.
The confrontation places Mendonca, who was nominated to the Supreme Court by former President Jair Bolsonaro, in direct conflict with Moraes, one of Brazil’s most influential and controversial justices.
Moraes led proceedings against Bolsonaro over an alleged 2023 coup attempt, culminating in the former president’s conviction in 2025.
The latest dispute has raised concerns about institutional divisions within Brazil’s highest court as competing allegations involving its members and senior law enforcement officials continue to unfold.
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