Bolsonaro accused of gambling embezzlement as Brazil’s Bets regime turns into a political and legal mess

Brazil’s run-off election has picked up a gambling angle. Senator Flávio Bolsonaro is being linked by investigators and media reports to a money laundering scheme tied to online gambling businesses, while the question for the payments side is simpler: who touched which funds, through which entities, and under what licence.

1. Brazil goes to the polls on Sunday 25 October in a run-off between Lula and Bolsonaro, and the campaign has now picked up allegations involving Flávio Bolsonaro, who is described as the marginal favourite. The timing matters because any outcome changes not just the presidency but also the legal perimeter around the people involved.
2. Polícia Federal is investigating Flávio Bolsonaro’s relationship with lawyer Willer Tomaz, who is reported to have acted as a money mule for millions of reais processed via multiple online gambling platforms associated with Tomaz’s businesses. The allegations were reported by the investigative magazine piauí and followed up by Folha de S.Paulo.
3. According to those reports, Tomaz generated R$6.3bn (circa €1bn) in wagering transactions between 2025 and 2026, primarily via bets placed on the Blaze platform. Tomaz has not been charged, and his defence says the figure refers to accumulated betting turnover, not profit, adding that he can account for deposits of R$326m (approximately €57m) and withdrawals of R$234m (approximately €41m).
4. The investigation also aims to question Flávio Bolsonaro over why he allegedly concealed an “indirect stake” in Best Bet, operated by Rede Loto and authorised under a licence from the Rio de Janeiro State Lottery (LOTERJ). Rede Loto is majority owned by Cathedral Holdings, a Madeira-based business in which Tomaz is a partner.
5. Suspicion further centres on the relationship between Cathedral and Alcazar Holdings, another Tomaz-controlled company based in Madeira. Documents cited by piauí allegedly named Bolsonaro as a “master user” of an Alcazar bank account, which would imply access to financial records and power to approve transactions. Both men deny that Bolsonaro shared access to the account or held a stake in Best Bet, and no charges have been issued against Tomaz.

For high-risk PSPs, the useful detail is not the political drama but the structure: licensed betting activity in Brazil, a state lottery authorisation via LOTERJ, and offshore-linked ownership through Madeira entities. Flávio Bolsonaro also holds “special jurisdiction rights”, meaning certain criminal cases tied to his parliamentary duties can go to Brazil’s Supreme Federal Court (STF). SBC Noticias Brazil noted that if he wins on Sunday 25th and becomes president in 2027, Article 86 of the Federal Constitution would prevent him from being held criminally liable during his term for acts unrelated to his duties.