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In an unexpected turn of events, Brazil’s former President Jair Bolsonaro was arrested by federal police in a preemptive move on Saturday. This development comes just days before he was scheduled to commence a 27-year sentence for orchestrating a coup attempt, according to official reports.
Bolsonaro, who had been under house arrest, was taken into custody and transported to the police headquarters in Brasilia, the nation’s capital. This was confirmed by a close aide who wished to remain unnamed.
The authorities, while not explicitly naming Bolsonaro, issued a brief statement indicating that the arrest was executed at the behest of Brazil’s Supreme Court. However, additional information has not been disclosed by either the federal police or the court.
Andriely Cirino, an aide to Bolsonaro, verified the details of the arrest to The Associated Press, noting that it occurred early Saturday morning at approximately 6 a.m.
Bolsonaro’s aide Andriely Cirino confirmed to The Associated Press that the arrest took place around 6 a.m. on Saturday.
The 70-year-old former president was taken from his house in a gated community in the upscale Jardim Botanico neighborhood to the federal police headquarters, Cirino said.
Bolsonaro was placed under house arrest in early August, weeks before he was convicted in his coup trial. His lawyers were pleading with Brazil’s Supreme Court to keep him at home to serve his sentence, citing his poor health.
Like most of his colleagues, Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes, who oversaw the coup case, rarely carries out decisions on Saturdays, unless there are security risks involved.
Local media reported that Bolsonaro, who was Brazil’s president from 2019 to 2022, was expected to begin serving his sentence sometime next week after the far-right leader exhausted all appeals of his conviction for leading a coup attempt.
Saturday’s preemptive arrest does not mean Bolsonaro will remain at the federal police headquarters to serve his sentence. Brazilian law requires that all convicts start their sentences in prison.
One of the former president’s sons, Sen. Flávio Bolsonaro, has been egging on supporters to take to the streets in defense of his father since Thursday.
Some of Bolsonaro’s supporters, who claim he is being politically persecuted, are expected to rally outside the federal police headquarters throughout the weekend.
The former president and several of his allies were convicted by a panel of Supreme Court justices for attempting to overthrow Brazil’s democracy following his 2022 election loss to President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. Prosecutors said the coup plot included plans to kill Lula and to encourage an insurrection in early 2023.
Bolsonaro was also found guilty on charges of leading an armed criminal organization and attempting the violent abolition of the democratic rule of law. Bolsonaro has denied wrongdoing.
He remains a key figure in Brazilian politics, despite being ineligible to run again at least until 2030, after a separate ruling by Brazil’s top electoral court. Polls show he would be a strong candidate in next year’s vote if allowed to run.
Bolsonaro is an ally of U.S. President Donald Trump, who has called his trial a “witch hunt.” Bolsonaro was mentioned in a July order by the U.S. administration raising tariffs on several Brazilian exports by 50%. Trump on Friday dropped most of the higher tariffs on Brazilian exports.
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