A judge from the Minas Gerais Court of Justice, Pedro Fernandes Alonso Alves Pereira, has ordered the release of digital influencer Ronnie Peterson da Silva, who was imprisoned in 2025 for extorting money from local authorities in Santa Luzia, MG. Peterson was arrested in Brasília in September 2025 after being accused of demanding R$ 100,000 from the mayor, vice mayor, and municipal secretaries in exchange for not publishing defamatory content about them on social media. In their refusal to comply with his demands, the politicians claimed Peterson then began to publish posts that negatively impacted their reputation.

In a ruling made on Tuesday, the judge assessed that Peterson no longer posed a risk to public order, nor did he have the capability to influence the gathering of evidence as the case progresses. The decision to release him was based on the understanding that continued detention could be seen as an illegal constraint due to excessive duration. Though released, the judge imposed several precautionary measures on Peterson to mitigate any potential further wrongdoing.

As part of these measures, Peterson is barred from leaving the municipality he resides in and is prohibited from contacting the victims involved in the case. This set of restrictions seeks to balance the judicial process with the rights of the accused, while still addressing the concerns raised by the local authorities during the extortion allegations.