Photo credit: AP
Former Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro was taken into custody early Saturday after a Supreme Court justice said his ankle monitor had been tampered with, prompting fears he might attempt to flee as supporters mobilised nearby, according to AP.Bolsonaro’s detention comes days before he was expected to begin serving a 27-year sentence for allegedly orchestrating a 2022 coup attempt, according to officials and his legal team. Acting on a Supreme Court request, federal police arrested him around 6 am and transferred him from his home in the upscale Jardim Botânico district to federal police headquarters, aide Andriely Cirino told AP. Local reports said the 70-year-old had exhausted all appeals and was expected to start his sentence next week.Justice Alexandre de Moraes, who oversees the post-election coup-attempt case, ordered federal police to enter Bolsonaro’s Brasília residence before dawn and move him to the federal police headquarters. De Moraes said data from the monitoring device showed a violation at 12.08 am, triggering a preventive arrest ahead of a planned rally called by Bolsonaro’s son later in the day.A custody report reviewed by AP, along with video submitted to the court, showed Bolsonaro admitting he tried to open the device with a soldering iron; the cap appeared heavily damaged. His legal team denied the allegation, saying the timeline “did not take place” as stated. A federal police representative confirmed to Reuters that the former leader underwent intake procedures on Saturday morning, ending several months of house arrest. He had been ordered to wear the device after being deemed a potential flight risk.De Moraes, in his order, said the attempt to breach the ankle monitor reinforced concerns that Bolsonaro might try to flee “amid the confusion” caused by the demonstration organised by his son. He also noted the proximity of the US embassy in Brasília, saying it lies just 13 km away — “a distance that can be covered in a 15-minute drive.” The judge cited previous instances of defendants and political allies of the former president leaving Brazil to avoid detention.Outside the federal police headquarters, small but vocal groups of both supporters and critics gathered, prompting officers to keep the opposing crowds apart, AP reported. The mobilisation began after Flávio Bolsonaro released a video urging people to show up at 7 pm, asking whether they would “fight for your country” or watch events unfold from home.According to Reuters, Bolsonaro was sentenced in September to 27 years and three months for plotting to stop President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva from taking office in 2023, and identified as the central figure in the plan. Although convicted, he had not yet received a final arrest warrant as his appeals had not been exhausted. He has also been barred from running for public office until 2030.
