A presentation at Guide for families abroad: A relative arrested in Brazil (online publication) by Felipe Mendes Smargiassi
D E TA I N E D I N B R A Z I L · A G U I D E F O R FA M I L I E S A B R OA D A relative arrested in Brazil What families living outside Brazil can do in the first days, step by step, with the rules that apply. The arrest and the place of detention must be reported to the judge and to the family Federal Constitution, art. 5, LXII He may ask for his consulate to be told without delay Vienna Convention on Consular Relations, art. 36 A custody hearing within 24 hours decides release or detention Code of Criminal Procedure, art. 310 Release may come with conditions, such as surrendering the passport Code of Criminal Procedure, arts. 319 and 320 Never pay anyone to “release” a detainee: fees go only to the lawyer Bail is paid only through an official court slip Felipe Mendes Smargiassi Criminal defense lawyer · OAB/MG 155.242 · smargiassi.com.br Edition of October 2026 · Free to share with attribution · General information, not advice on a specific case
A RELATIVE ARRESTED IN BRAZIL FELIPE MENDES SMARGIASSI · OAB/MG 155.242 When a foreign national is arrested in Brazil, the family usually learns about it from a short phone call, a message from a friend or a consulate email. They do not know where the person is, who decides what happens next or how fast things move. Brazilian law answers most of these questions, and the first days matter more than any other moment of the case. Where he is and who has been told The Brazilian Constitution requires that any arrest, and the place where the person is held, be communicated immediately to the competent judge and to the family or a person indicated by the detainee (art. 5, LXII). The Code of Criminal Procedure adds the prosecution service and sets a 24hour deadline for the arrest record to reach the judge; if the detainee has not named a lawyer, a full copy goes to the Public Defender’s Office (art. 306). In practice, the fastest ways for a family abroad to locate a relative are the consulate of his country in Brazil and the Public Defender’s Office of the city where the arrest happened. Ask for two things: the name of the prison or police unit where he is held, and the case number. With the case number, a Brazilian lawyer can read the file and act. What to do today 1. Contact your country’s consulate in Brazil. Ask where your relative is held and for the case number. 2. If the consulate cannot help quickly, contact the Public Defender’s Office (Defensoria Pública) of the state where the arrest happened. 3. Gather documents for the lawyer: passport copy, proof of address or accommodation in Brazil, proof of work, study or a return ticket, and the name of someone in Brazil who can receive him. 4. Check any lawyer’s full name and OAB number in the national register of lawyers, cna.oab.org.br, before sending documents or money. 5. Keep a written record: names, phone numbers, dates and every message received. The custody hearing, usually within 24 hours After an arrest in the act (flagrante), the judge must hold a custody hearing within 24 hours, with the detainee, his lawyer or the Public Defender and the prosecutor present (art. 310). The judge does not decide guilt at this hearing. He decides whether the arrest was lawful and whether the person stays in custody, choosing between releasing an unlawful arrest, granting provisional release (with or without bail and other conditions) or converting the arrest into pretrial detention. For foreigners, the main argument against release is usually the risk of leaving the country. Judges often allow release under conditions such as surrendering the passport within 24 hours and a ban on leaving Brazil (art. 320), periodic appearance in court, or electronic monitoring (art. 319). The defense needs concrete evidence: an address in Brazil, a job or course, someone who will receive him, and documents showing who he is. This is where the family can help, by sending documents quickly to the lawyer.
A RELATIVE ARRESTED IN BRAZIL FELIPE MENDES SMARGIASSI · OAB/MG 155.242 What the consulate can and cannot do Under the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations (art. 36), which Brazil applies, a detained foreigner has the right to have his consulate informed without delay if he so requests, and the authorities must inform him of that right. Consular officers may visit him, talk and correspond with him and help arrange legal representation. Consulates generally do not act as defense lawyers, do not pay bail and do not intervene in the case. They are, however, a reliable channel for locating the person, checking on his health and passing on personal documents. Interpreters and documents A detainee who does not speak Portuguese must be questioned through an interpreter (art. 193). Foreign documents can be filed in the case and translated when necessary (art. 236). If the first statement was taken without an interpreter, the lawyer should raise it at the custody hearing. Words you will hear Prisão em flagrante Arrest in the act, made while or right after the offense. Audiência de custódia Custody hearing before a judge, within 24 hours. Liberdade provisória Provisional release, with or without bail and conditions. Fiança Bail, paid through an official court slip. Prisão preventiva Pretrial detention ordered by the judge. Defensoria Pública Public Defender’s Office, free of charge. Número do processo Case number, which lets a lawyer find the file. Habeas corpus Urgent request to a higher court against an unlawful detention. Choosing a lawyer and avoiding scams Every Brazilian lawyer is registered with the Brazilian Bar Association (OAB), and the registration can be checked in the national public register of lawyers (Cadastro Nacional dos Advogados). Ask for the lawyer’s full name and OAB number and check them before sending documents or money. Scams that target foreign families People pretend to be lawyers, police officers or court staff and ask for urgent transfers, usually to third-party accounts, promising a quick release. There is no payment for release outside the court case. Bail, when set, is paid through an official court slip linked to the case, and legal fees are paid only to the lawyer or his law firm, never to third parties.
A RELATIVE ARRESTED IN BRAZIL FELIPE MENDES SMARGIASSI · OAB/MG 155.242 If he stays in custody If the judge orders pretrial detention, the defense can challenge it with habeas corpus before the appeals court and with new requests whenever circumstances change. The Code requires the judge to review the need for pretrial detention every 90 days (art. 316, sole paragraph). Brazil’s Supreme Court has held that missing that deadline does not release the detainee automatically, but the judge must then be asked to reassess the grounds for detention, so the defense should push for that review. A final conviction may also have immigration consequences, including expulsion under Brazil’s Migration Law (Law 13,445/2017, art. 54), and in some cases the sentenced person may be transferred to serve the sentence in his home country when there is a treaty or a promise of reciprocity (art. 103). Both points belong in the strategy from the start. Find the court and the prison unit The open Brazil prison and court district map lists, for 2,167 municipalities in all 27 states, the court district (comarca) with jurisdiction, the courthouse telephone and the prison units listed for each municipality, 767 units in all. Every record cites its official source and the date it was checked. Online: smargiassi.com.br/dados/mapa-prisional · Dataset (CC BY 4.0): doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.23771753 Legal references Federal Constitution of Brazil, art. 5, LXII Code of Criminal Procedure (Decree-Law 3,689/1941), arts. 193, 236, 306, 310, 316, 319 and 320 Vienna Convention on Consular Relations, art. 36, in force in Brazil by Decree 61,078/1967 Migration Law (Law 13,445/2017), arts. 54 and 103 National register of lawyers (OAB): cna.oab.org.br About the author Felipe Mendes Smargiassi is a Brazilian criminal defense lawyer, registered with the Brazilian Bar Association, Minas Gerais Section (OAB/MG 155.242), since 2014, based in Guaxupé and taking cases throughout Brazil. He trained for four years at the Public Defender’s Office and, from 2023 to 2026, worked at the São Paulo State Court of Justice. He assists foreigners and families abroad whose relative is detained, missing or facing a case in Brazil, always in writing, in English. More in English: smargiassi.com.br/en/lawyer-in-brazil · smargiassi.com.br/en/detained-in-brazil Official contact. Contact is handled only through felipe@smargiassi.com.br and WhatsApp +55 35 91019-8798. No payment is ever received in the name of third parties: payments are made only to Felipe Mendes Smargiassi. Please be wary of any other contact using this name. This guide gives general information about Brazilian law as of October 2026. It is not legal advice on a specific case, and reading it does not create a lawyer and client relationship. Free to share in full, with attribution to the author.
A four-page guide, in English, for families outside Brazil whose relative has just been arrested there: what happens in the first 24 hours (arrest in flagrante, custody hearing), what the consulate can and cannot do (Vienna Convention, art. 36), how to locate the person, a first-day checklist, a short glossary of Portuguese legal terms and the legal references.
Also available with a DOI on Zenodo and on Issuu. The companion open dataset, Brazil prison and court district map, links every covered municipality to its judicial district, courthouse and prison units (CC BY 4.0).
By Felipe Mendes Smargiassi, criminal defense lawyer in Brazil (OAB/MG 155.242). More at smargiassi.com.br. Official contact only through felipe@smargiassi.com.br and WhatsApp +55 35 91019-8798; nothing is received in the name of third parties.
The following resources were mentioned during the presentation or are useful additional information.
The author’s website, in English, with the explanatory pages for families abroad and the official contact channels (felipe@smargiassi.com.br and WhatsApp +55 35 91019-8798).
The same four-page guide, archived with a DOI (10.5281/zenodo.23836318), CC BY 4.0.
Open dataset (CC BY 4.0) linking 2,167 Brazilian municipalities to their judicial district, courthouse and prison units; data dictionary and DOI (10.5281/zenodo.23779474) on the project page.
