Bolsonaro was banned from running for office for eight years after being accused of undermining Brazilian democracy by falsely claiming that electronic ballots used in the October 2022 poll were vulnerable to hacking and fraud.

The bitterly fought election was won by an extremely narrow margin by left-winger Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.

Mr Bolsonaro never publicly acknowledged his defeat and left Brazil for the US two days before Lula was sworn in as president.

His supporters, who refused to accept the outcome of the election, stormed Brazil’s Congress, the presidential palace and the building housing the Supreme Court on 8 January 2023.

Parts of the buildings were ransacked and police arrested 1,500 of the rioters.

In his X post, Bolsonaro added that, external he would wait to see what was in the indictment.

“I will wait for the lawyer. This, obviously, will go to the attorney general’s office. It is at the PGR [Prosecutor General of the Republic] that the fight begins,” he added.