Brazil's Bolsonaro slams corruption probe into son

Brazil's right wing President Jair Bolsonaro on Friday slammed Rio de Janeiro's public prosecutor over a corruption investigation targeting his eldest son Flavio, a federal senator.

Bolsonaro said his family is the victim of a media campaign and accused the prosecutor of leaking information on the case, then blamed the situation on a possible move by Rio state governor Wilson Witzel, a former ally, "who wants to be president" in 2022.

Senator Flavio Bolsonaro, 38, is suspected of money laundering during his time as a regional lawmaker in Rio.

"The investigation began last year and they've still found nothing," Bolsonaro said as he left his official residence in the capital Brasilia, where journalists mingled with his supporters.

"If Flavio did something wrong then it's up to him to respond, not me." Visibly flustered, Bolsonaro then turned to one of the reporters and said: "You have the face of a homosexual but that doesn't mean I'm going to accuse you of being a homosexual, even though it's not a crime to be homosexual."