PF arrests suspect for destroying Dom João 6th’s watch – 01/23/2023 – Politics

The man suspected of having destroyed the clock brought to Brazil by Dom João 6th, in 1808, and which was on display at the Planalto Palace, was arrested in Minas Gerais this Monday (23).

The arrest took place in Uberlândia (MG). The man was identified as Antonio Claudio Alves Ferreira, 30, from the city of Catalão (GO).

The detention order came from Minister Alexandre de Moraes, of the STF (Federal Supreme Court), who complied with the request of the Federal Police.

The man was caught by the palace’s internal footage, on the 8th, throwing the clock on the floor and then trying to break the closed circuit cameras with an extinguisher. The suspect was wearing a T-shirt with the face of former President Jair Bolsonaro (PL).

The only copy of the piece in the world, the object was broken on the day that the headquarters of the three Powers were invaded and vandalized by supporters of the former president.

The clock was housed on the third floor of the Planalto Palace, where the office of President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT) is located, when the place was invaded by hundreds of coup plotters.

The hands and numbers of the clock were torn off, as well as a statue that graced the top of the piece.

The object was given as a gift to Dom João 6º by the court of Luís 14, of France. The work was designed by André-Charles Boulle and manufactured by French watchmaker Balthazar Martinot at the end of the 18th century, a few years before being brought to Brazil.

According to a publication on the federal government website, there are only two watches manufactured by Martinot in the world. The other is on display at the Palace of Versailles in France, but is half the size of the piece that was destroyed. The value of the damaged clock is considered non-standard, says the text.

The clock was restored in 2012 after being salvaged from a federal government warehouse.

Before Ferreira, several others responsible for invading the headquarters of the Three Powers were arrested. On Friday (20), Minister Alexandre de Moraes concluded the analysis of the situation of those arrested for involvement in the attacks. Of the 1,406 detainees, 942 had their prison in flagrante delicto converted into preventive (with no set period) and 464 obtained provisional release, through precautionary measures.

In decisions to maintain prisons, the minister considered that the conduct practiced was illicit and very serious, with the aim of, through violence and serious threat, coercing and preventing the exercise of constituted constitutional powers.