The 1st Panel unanimously rejected the defense’s appeal against Moraes’ decision that ordered the former advisor to be returned to prison in Paraná
The Federal Supreme Court unanimously upheld , former advisor to (PL), in the Public Prison of Ponta Grossa (PR). The collegiate rejected the defense’s appeal against the decision of Minister Alexandre de Moraes, who had ordered the defendant’s return to the prison unit in the interior of Paraná. The trial was held in a virtual plenary session and ended on Monday (April 13, 2026).
It began with a vote from the rapporteur, minister Alexandre de Moraes, on April 3. At the time, Moraes defended the maintenance of custody in Ponta Grossa and stated that the defense sought to reverse a previous decision that reestablished the prison there. Read the vote (PDF — 83.3 kB).
The trial was taken to the 1st Panel of the STF, composed of ministers Cristiano Zanin, Cármen Lúcia and Flávio Dino, in addition to the rapporteur. The board fully followed Moraes’ vote and rejected the defense’s appeal.
The defense questioned the order for Filipe Martins to return to Ponta Grossa after his transfer to the Penal Medical Complex, in Curitiba. According to lawyers, the change of unit was not a result of the prisoner’s preference, but rather an administrative security assessment. Moraes, however, maintained the understanding that custody should remain in Ponta Grossa.
UNDERSTAND THE CASE
Filipe Martins was preventively on January 2nd as part of the investigation into the attempted coup d’état. The measure was determined by Alexandre de Moraes under the understanding that Jair Bolsonaro’s former advisor failed to comply with precautionary measures imposed by the Supreme Court.
During his arrest, Martins was taken to the Penal Medical Complex, in Paraná, on January 6, by decision of the state penitentiary administration. The defense maintains that the change occurred due to characteristics of the Ponta Grossa unit, treated as a temporary transit location, and not due to the initiative or preference of the prisoner.
Moraes, however, understood that the change could not occur without authorization from the STF, and the return to the Ponta Grossa prison on February 28th and maintained this understanding on March 6th. It was against this decision that the lawyers appealed.
Martins has also been by the STF to 21 years in prison in the case over the attempted coup. According to the accusation, he is part of the nucleus linked to the articulation of measures to contest and try to reverse the result of the 2022 elections.
PROHIBITED FROM GIVING INTERVIEWS
Alexandre de Moraes do Poder360 to interview Filipe Martins. In the decision, signed in July 2025, the minister stated that the measure was necessary to avoid “risk of turmoil at this procedural moment”without detailing how the interview could compromise the progress of the case.
The newspaper’s request was filed with the STF on March 12, 2025. When requesting authorization, Poder360 maintained that carrying out the interview did not conflict with the precautionary measures imposed on Martins and argued that there was a public interest in access to information.
“Poder360 also declared that authorization to carry out the interview is an “essential measure to meet the undeniable public interest involved and based on freedom of the press and information, while also safeguarding equal treatment between the defendants”. Moraes did not respond to this argument presented, about there being a need for “equal treatment between the defendants”. that constitutes a violation of a current precautionary measure. […] It is clear that the person being investigated must be aware of all their obligations before this STF and in view of the ongoing investigation. He must, therefore, when granting the interview, respect all the terms of all precautions imposed. And if he doesn’t, he should certainly be held accountable. […] However, depriving it of any and all manifestations –of undeniable public interest, it is emphasized– does not seem like the right option to us. It represents the imposition of a silence that can be classified as prior censorship – a censorship that the Federal Supreme Court has repudiated so many times throughout history”, argued Poder360 in the request that was rejected by Moraes.”
This digital newspaper appealed to the 1st Panel. The action is still awaiting judgment.
