The Brazilian Supreme Court on Tuesday ordered former Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro to begin serving a 27-year sentence for plotting a failed coup after he exhausted all appeals.
Bolsonaro, 70, was convicted in September over a scheme to stop Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva from taking office after the 2022 election.
Prosecutors said the scheme failed only due to a lack of support from military top brass.
Photo: AFP
The court rejected an appeal to his sentence earlier this month and on Tuesday ruled that the judgement was final.
The court also ordered a military tribunal to decide whether Bolsonaro should be stripped of his captain’s rank.
Bolsonaro had been under house arrest until Saturday, when he was detained at police headquarters in the capital, Brasilia, for tampering with his ankle monitor using a soldering iron.
Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes said that there were signs Bolsonaro was planning to flee during a planned vigil organized by his son outside his home.
The justice pointed to the location of the nearby US embassy and Bolsonaro’s relationship with US President Donald Trump, suggesting that he might have tried to escape to seek political asylum.
Bolsonaro said he had acted from “paranoia” induced by medications he was on and denied trying to escape.
The court ruled that he would remain detained in the officers’ room — a secure space for protected prisoners — where he is in Brasilia.
Five others, including military generals and former ministers, also began serving sentences on Tuesday of between 19 and 26 years.
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