Former president Jair Bolsonaro (PL) will undergo a custody hearing this Sunday (23), at 12 pm, one day after having his house arrest converted into preventive detention by order of Minister Alexandre de Moraes, of the Federal Supreme Court (STF). The procedure, mandatory even in Supreme Court decisions, is used for a judge to assess the legality of the detention and possible violations of the prisoner’s rights.
Bolsonaro is being held at the Federal Police Superintendency in Brasília, in a State room — a space reserved for authorities, as has already occurred with Lula and Michel Temer. Moraes’ decision ordered permanent medical care for the former president and prohibited the use of handcuffs or public exposure during arrest. All visits must be authorized by the STF, except those by lawyers and doctors.
According to the PF, Bolsonaro admitted to having tried to break the electronic ankle bracelet with a soldering iron in the early hours of Saturday (22). The expert identified heat marks on the equipment. For Moraes, the attempted tampering and the risk of escape weighed on the decision to order preventive detention, which still does not mean the beginning of serving the 27 years and 3 months sentence to which he was sentenced in September, in a trial by the First Panel of the STF. After being detained, the former president had the device removed. The PF reported having complied with the order issued by the Supreme Court.
Conviction, appeals and reactions
On September 11, Bolsonaro and his allies were convicted of crimes linked to the attempted coup d’état, resulting from the events of January 8, when supporters of the former president invaded the headquarters of the Three Powers. Despite sentences exceeding 20 years for the majority of defendants, imprisonment will only occur after a final judgment. The defense has already announced that it will appeal with infringing embargoes. On Friday (21), lawyers had asked that Bolsonaro serve a possible sentence at home, citing a “profoundly weakened” health condition.
The defense released a statement stating that preventive detention “causes deep perplexity” and “could put your life at risk”. He also said that the motivation, a vigil called by Flávio Bolsonaro in front of the condominium where the former president was, would not justify the measure. The PL classified the arrest as “unnecessary”, also citing the former president’s health condition.
The detention of the former president provoked strong mobilization among allies. Michelle Bolsonaro, who was in Ceará, stated that “they want to silence the voice” of her husband and asked for prayers from her supporters. Flávio Bolsonaro spoke of persecution and stated that “they want to bury all the Bolsonaros alive”. Allied governors offered solidarity, including Tarcísio de Freitas (Republicanos-SP), who said he believed in Bolsonaro’s innocence. In Congress, PL parliamentarians classified the arrest as unfair, while government leaders defended the legality of the decision.
In the government, two ministers from the Lula administration commented on the arrest online, despite instructions not to do so. Gleisi Hoffmann (Institutional Relations) stated that the measure follows due legal process and called Bolsonaro “the head of the coup organization”. Guilherme Boulos said it was “a milestone in history”.
