The minister of the (Supreme Federal Court) sent his chief of staff to check the prison facilities where the former president () could serve his sentence.
The incident occurred last week, according to what was reported to Sheet three people linked to the Brasília penitentiary system. Moraes’ assistant was accompanied by the judge, head of the Criminal Executions Court of the Federal District.
Alexandre de Moraes is responsible for deciding where Bolsonaro and the others convicted in the coup plot should go. One of the possibilities is Papuda, the famous prison in Brasília that faces .
Also convicted of the attempted coup d’état were Almir Garnier Santos (former head of the Navy), Mauro Cid (lieutenant colonel of the Army), Walter Braga Netto (former Minister of Defense), Paulo Sérgio (former Minister of Defense), Alexandre Ramagem (former director of Abin and federal deputy), Augusto Heleno (former minister of the GSI) and Anderson Torres (former minister of Justice).
The Supreme Court analyzes in a virtual plenary session, starting on Friday (7), the seven convicts from the central core of the coup plot. The expectation is that the process will be concluded by December, with the sentence beginning this year.
Chief of Staff Cristina Kusahara visited three different locations in Papuda. The inspection lasted longer in PDF 1 (Federal District Penitentiary number 1). The unit is intended for prisoners in a closed regime and has four blocks — one of which is maximum security.
One of the blocks in PDF 1, known as Fox, has a wing designed to house vulnerable prisoners. The location has less crowded cells that are more easily adaptable for special prisons. It is considered the maximum security area of Papuda, with more surveillance from criminal police officers.
It was there, for example, that former senator Luiz Estevão, former minister Geddel Vieira Filho and former deputy Márcio Junqueira were arrested, preventively detained on suspicion of helping parliamentarians obstruct the Lava Jato investigation.
Each of these blocks has spaces for social reintegration, intimate visits, sunbathing, classroom and other activities provided for in the Criminal Executions Law.
A criminal police officer consulted by the Sheet said that the Fox block in Papuda quotes construction materials to replace the toilets in the cells. The work was already planned and must be brought forward in view of the possible arrival of the new prisoners.
Another area visited by Cristina was the 19th Military Police Battalion of the Federal District — known as “Papudinha”, because it is located in front of Papuda. In 2023, former minister Anderson Torres was preventively detained in that battalion.
Minister Alexandre de Moraes’ office did not comment on the visit to Papuda. The DF Court of Justice said that judge Leila Cury carries out “inspections in the local prison system regularly, as provided for in the Penal Execution Law”.
The body also stated that the Supreme Court did not delegate any criminal execution proceedings relating to the January 8 attacks to the local court. “Therefore, it is not up to VEP to judge [Vara de Execuções Penais] express itself regarding any enforceable act.”
Bolsonaro was sentenced to 27 years and three months in prison for leading the 2022 coup plot. He is the first former president in the history of Brazil punished for the crime of a coup d’état.
The sentence opened discussions about where the former president should serve his sentence. Papuda is one of the possible destinations.
As a retired military officer, Bolsonaro has the right to serve his sentence in a military unit. Supreme Court ministers and general officers state that an arrest in the Planalto Military Command would not be appropriate, given the possible gathering of supporters of the former president in the Army area.
The Federal Police also left an improvised cell ready at the corporation’s superintendence in Brasília. The room has a television, bed, refrigerator and bathroom — a space similar to the one occupied by President Lula (PT) when he was imprisoned in Curitiba (PR).
Bolsonaro’s defense tries to ensure that the former president remains under house arrest. Lawyers have gathered documents about the health problems that the politician is treating, such as skin cancer and hiccups, to request benefits at the end of the process.
The visit by Moraes’ assistant raised alarm in the Government of the Federal District about the possibility of Bolsonaro being sent to prison after the end of the coup plot process, scheduled for this year.
On Monday (3), the Secretary of Penitentiary Administration of Brasília, Wenderson Souza e Teles, sent a letter to the office of Minister Alexandre de Moraes requesting that Bolsonaro undergo a medical evaluation before his final arrest.
The objective, according to the document, is to assess whether Bolsonaro is able to stay in Papuda in the face of health problems.
“It is requested that convict Jair Messias Bolsonaro be subjected to medical evaluation by a specialized team, so that his clinical condition and compatibility with the medical and nutritional assistance available in prisons in this capital of the Republic can be assessed”, he says.
