Brazil intelligence agency's second-in-command fired in illegal spying probe

By Lisandra Paraguassu and Ricardo Brito

BRASILIA (Reuters) - Brazil's president fired a top official from the country's intelligence agency on Tuesday amid a probe into suspected illegal spying during the presidency of Jair Bolsonaro.

Alessandro Moretti, second-in-command at the Brazilian Intelligence Agency (Abin), was dismissed according to an announcement in Tuesday's official gazette, which named political scientist Marco Aurelio Cepik as his replacement, without giving further details.

As part of the probe, federal police have raided property linked to Bolsonaro's son Carlos, two sources and a spokesman for the family have said. The younger Bolsonaro is a Rio de Janeiro councillor already under investigation for running a fake news factory. He has denied any wrongdoing.

Abin did not immediately respond to a late night request for comment, while Moretti could not be reached.

(Reporting by Lisandra Paraguassu and Ricardo Brito; Writing by Sarah Morland; Editing by Raju Gopalakrishnan)