Former Brazilian President Bolsonaro Arrested on Suspicion of Planning to Evade 27-Year Prison Sentence

Sao Paulo:

Brazil's federal police arrested former president Jair Bolsonaro on Saturday amid concerns he was planning to evade his 27-year prison sentence for orchestrating a coup attempt.

In a surprising development during the final phase of a contentious criminal trial, federal agents entered Bolsonaro's residence early Saturday under Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes's directive, transporting the former president to federal police headquarters in Brasilia.

Justice de Moraes, who presided over the case regarding Bolsonaro's attempt to retain power following his 2022 electoral defeat to President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, ordered the preemptive arrest after alleging Bolsonaro's ankle monitor was tampered with at 12:08 a.m. Saturday. Bolsonaro's legal team disputed this claim in an official statement.

The 70-year-old former leader, who had been under house arrest and required to wear an electronic monitoring device after being deemed a flight risk, was taken into custody around 6 a.m. Saturday, as confirmed by his aide Andriely Cirino to The Associated Press.

De Moraes explained the arrest was a preventative measure to prevent Bolsonaro from potentially escaping during a protest his son had organized for later that day.

"Are you going to fight for your country or are you going to watch it all from your cellphone in your home's sofa?" Flávio Bolsonaro had stated in a video inviting supporters to gather outside his father's residence at 7 p.m. "I invite you to fight with us."

According to de Moraes, the alleged tampering with the ankle monitor indicated Bolsonaro would attempt to flee during "the confusion that would be caused by a demonstration organized by his son."

The judge expressed concerns about Bolsonaro potentially seeking refuge at the U.S. Embassy in Brasilia. He also referenced other defendants in the coup case and political allies of the former president who had left Brazil to avoid incarceration.

"He is located about 13 kilometers (8 miles) away from where the United States of America embassy lies, in a distance that can be covered in a 15-minute drive," noted de Moraes, who has previously faced sanctions from the Trump administration.

In August, Brazil's federal police discovered messages linking Bolsonaro to a political asylum request in Argentina, where his ally Javier Milei serves as president.

Bolsonaro's legal representatives stated that his arrest "causes deep perplexity because, as (de Moraes') chronology of facts shows, it is based in a vigil for prayer," rather than a protest.

The preemptive detention of Bolsonaro, an ally of U.S. President Donald Trump, will be reviewed and voted on Monday by the five-justice Supreme Court panel that convicted and sentenced him to prison by a 4-to-1 vote in September.

Brazilian media reported that Bolsonaro, who governed Brazil from 2019 to 2022 and remains a significant political figure, was expected to begin serving his sentence next week after exhausting all appeals of his conviction.

Few demonstrators had gathered outside federal police headquarters in Brasilia by Saturday morning, with larger crowds anticipated later as prayer vigil organizers announced plans to relocate to the facility where the former president is being held.

Meanwhile, Bolsonaro's critics celebrated online and scheduled gatherings in major Brazilian cities.

"The video shot by Flávio Bolsonaro stimulates the disrespect to the constitutional text, to the judicial decision and to (democratic) institutions, showing there's no limits for the criminal organization in its attempt to create chaos and conflict in this country, in a total disrespect to democracy," de Moraes wrote in his ruling.

Bolsonaro and several associates were convicted by Supreme Court justices for attempting to overthrow Brazil's democracy after his 2022 electoral defeat. Prosecutors alleged the coup plot included plans to assassinate Lula, Vice President Geraldo Alckmin, and de Moraes.

The former president was also found guilty of leading an armed criminal organization and attempting to violently abolish democratic rule of law. He has consistently denied all wrongdoing.

Fabio Wajngarten, Bolsonaro's former press adviser and attorney, called the arrest "a terrible stain on the institutions."

In a video posted on X, Wajngarten added: "It's a shame. I hope this is reviewed soon." He claimed Bolsonaro's ankle monitoring device was functioning normally Saturday morning.

"How could something that was broken, violated, be functioning normally nine hours later?" he questioned. "The president had dinner — a soup — yesterday with four brothers and brothers-in-law, took medication for hiccups, felt drowsy and laid down around 10 p.m. None of his sons were at the house."

Sóstenes Cavalcante, Bolsonaro's party whip in the lower house, accused de Moraes of exhibiting "psychopathy at the highest level."

"We will always stand by your side. Stay strong," he stated in a video shared with the AP. "We will respond appropriately."

In an Instagram post, former first lady Michelle Bolsonaro vowed that Bolsonaro's supporters "will not give up on our nation." She was away from Brasilia when her husband was arrested.

President Lula was in South Africa attending a G20 summit during the arrest. Gleisi Hoffmann, one of his senior ministers, remarked on social media that Bolsonaro's arrest followed "violent attempts of coercion" of Supreme Court justices by the former president.

Bolsonaro had been under house arrest since early August, weeks before his conviction. His lawyers had petitioned Brazil's Supreme Court to allow him to serve his sentence at home, citing health concerns, but Brazilian law mandates that convicts begin their sentences in prison.

Creomar de Souza, a political analyst with Dharma Political Risk and Strategy in Brasilia, suggested that de Moraes's decision would impact the 2026 presidential election, in which Lula seeks reelection while Bolsonaro remains barred from running.

"They had the idea of turning the 2026 election into a referendum on Bolsonaro. And for that to happen they needed actions, they needed to build an optics of Bolsonaro as a martyr and an impactful popular leader," de Souza told the AP. "At the end of the day, this shows the Bolsonaro family they will need to build their own alternative for the 2026 elections."