Journalism of Courage
Former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro was taken into federal police custody on Saturday, ending more than three months of house arrest as he continues to appeal a Supreme Court conviction linked to attacks on Brazil’s democracy.
His lawyer, Celso Vilardi, confirmed the detention to Reuters but did not specify the grounds. A person familiar with the matter told Reuters that the move was a preventative measure tied to the conditions of his house arrest. Federal police in Brasilia later confirmed Bolsonaro was undergoing routine intake procedures.
Bolsonaro, the far-right former leader, was sentenced in September to 27 years and three months in prison for orchestrating an attempted coup to cling to power after losing the 2022 election to President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva. Investigators identified him as the “leader and primary beneficiary” of a scheme to stop Lula from taking office.
A final arrest order has not yet been issued as Bolsonaro’s appeals remain pending.
For over 100 days, he had been under strict house arrest in a separate case, accused of encouraging US interference to derail ongoing criminal investigations. During this period, Bolsonaro was barred from social media but continued to receive visits from political allies.
His defence team is expected to push for him to serve any eventual prison sentence under house arrest, citing chronic health issues stemming from the 2018 stabbing attack that left him with long-term complications and multiple surgeries.
The political reverberations extend beyond Brazil. US president Donald Trump, a Bolsonaro ally, has called the case a “witch hunt”. Trump sanctioned Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes, who oversees the case, and imposed steep tariffs on several Brazilian imports — measures he began rolling back only this month.
Bolsonaro is already barred from contesting elections until 2030, following an electoral court ruling that found he abused state power during his 2022 re-election campaign.
