Flavio Bolsonaro arrives in US following Brazil election defeat despite passport ban

Brazilian senator Flavio Bolsonaro, who lost Sunday's presidential election to incumbent Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, has arrived in the United States after leaving his country despite a court order requiring him to surrender his passports.

The 45-year-old politician, son of former president Jair Bolsonaro, landed in Miami on Wednesday after travelling through Argentina and Ecuador with his wife and two daughters.

His departure came just days after Brazil's Supreme Court ordered him to hand over his travel documents as part of an investigation into alleged money laundering, accusations he has denied.

According to Argentine immigration authorities, Bolsonaro and his family crossed the border from Brazil at 10:50pm on Tuesday before boarding a private aircraft bound for Ecuador.

The family subsequently travelled to Florida, where Bolsonaro was photographed arriving at Opa-locka Executive Airport.

Brazilian media reported that Bolsonaro used his Italian passport to enter Argentina and his cancelled Brazilian diplomatic passport to enter the United States.

Brazilian police confirmed that his regular and diplomatic passports had been cancelled after he failed to comply with the court's deadline.

However, authorities said the travel restrictions did not automatically make him a fugitive, while investigations into his departure were continuing.

The development comes after Lula defeated Bolsonaro in Sunday's closely contested presidential runoff, securing 51.79% of the vote against his rival's 48.21%.

Bolsonaro has yet to formally concede defeat and previously raised allegations of voting irregularities.

Meanwhile, US officials confirmed that the Trump administration had approved visas for Bolsonaro and his family.

Lula criticised his rival's departure, saying he should have remained in Brazil to defend himself against the allegations.

Bolsonaro's father, Jair Bolsonaro, also travelled to Florida after losing the 2022 election before returning to Brazil.