Brazilian Supreme Court Justice André Mendonca has removed the head of the federal police and the intelligence chief from their positions, sparking a political crisis involving President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva’s government as the country approaches its October national elections. Mendonca, appointed by former President Jair Bolsonaro, claimed in his ruling that federal police Director-General Andrei Rodrigues, a Lula appointee, and intelligence director Leandro Almada had led an organization that allegedly created six illegal reports on the justice’s activities by the end of August. This decision has intensified tensions within Brazil’s political landscape, especially as Mendonca is currently overseeing two high-profile investigations: one into the collapse of Banco Master, which has implicated several politicians, and another into alleged fraud in Brazil’s pension system. The Banco Master case has primarily affected members of the opposition, while the pension fraud investigation has raised concerns about the conduct of one of Lula’s sons. Mendonca’s decision comes amid a broader conflict with fellow Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes, who previously sentenced Bolsonaro to prison for an attempted coup. Last week, Mendonca released federal police documents showing that Daniel Vorcaro, the owner of Banco Master, frequently sought legal advice from de Moraes before his arrest. De Moraes had denied any wrongdoing related to Vorcaro, although his wife had provided legal services to Banco Master through a 130 million reais ($25 million) contract. Since Mendonca’s release of these documents, de Moraes has faced growing pressure from politicians, the media, and legal experts to resign. He has not yet publicly commented on the situation. Brazil’s main media outlets reported that Mendonca is seeking to suspend de Moraes from the court until it decides whether to investigate him in the potential graft case. In response, de Moraes ruled that Mendonca should be investigated by the court and possibly impeached by the Senate for interviewing Vorcaro in August without the presence of federal police agents or prosecutors. On Monday, Brazil’s Independence Day, thousands of supporters of opposition presidential candidate Senator Flávio Bolsonaro, son of the former president, gathered in São Paulo. Many of the demonstrators called for de Moraes’ removal, holding a large inflatable figure of Mendonca and wearing shirts in support of the Supreme Court justice. This event highlighted the deepening political divisions in Brazil as the country moves toward its upcoming elections.