This Saturday, the Brazilian Federal Police carried out a preventive detention order against Jair Bolsonaro, executed after a decision by the Minister of the Supreme Federal Court, Alexandre de Moraes. The measure is based on an alleged “concrete flight risk” of the former president, as reported Brazil Agency.
According to Moraes’ resolution, the call for a religious vigil near Bolsonaro’s house—made by his son Flávio Bolsonaro—could generate “turmoil” and facilitate an eventual escape. The minister also ordered that the detainee receive medical attention “on a full-time basis” and restricted visits: only lawyers and their medical team may enter, with prior authorization from the court.
Bolsonaro, who had been under house arrest since August 4, wore an electronic anklet and was prevented from accessing embassies, consulates or social networks, directly or indirectly. In his defense, his lawyers had asked that he continue under house arrest for health reasons, alleging chronic illnesses that require “intense medical monitoring.” It has been confirmed that his medications were transferred to the Federal Police headquarters in Brasilia, where he is now detained.
Moraes justified the preventive detention by citing, among other factors, the possibility that Bolsonaro tried to break the electronic anklet, a suspicion that reinforced his decision.
The arrest comes at a delicate time: Bolsonaro was sentenced to 27 years and 3 months in prison in the so-called “Nucleus 1 criminal action” for his participation in a coup attempt in 2022.
For the first time in Brazilian history, a former president is convicted of crimes linked to attacks against the democratic order. During the trial, four of the five judges on the Supreme Court panel voted for his guilt. The sentence, however, did not imply his immediate imprisonment: Bolsonaro then remained under house arrest while the judicial proceedings progressed, until now.
The reactions did not take long to arrive. In front of the Federal Police headquarters in Brasilia, Bolsonaro supporters mobilized this Saturday in rejection of the former president’s preventive detention.
The mobilization, marked by slogans and flags, sought to give visibility to the claim of Bolsonaro sectors that consider the detention as an act of political persecution.
As reported by the EFE agency, in parallel, his political allies attacked the STF’s decision and took advantage of the scenario to renew pressure in Congress in favor of an amnesty that benefits both Bolsonaro and the others convicted of the attempted coup d’état.
