Jair Bolsonaro sentenced to 27 years in prison for plotting coup

Brazil’s Supreme Court convicted former President Bolsonaro for masterminding a 2022 coup plot to overturn the presidential election. The 70-year-old faces 27 years and 3 months in prison, with a lifetime ban from public office. Four of five justices voted to convict, citing evidence of a months-long conspiracy.

Bolsonaro’s plan involved declaring a state of emergency, dissolving the Supreme Court, and granting the military sweeping powers. Documents revealed an assassination plot targeting President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, his running mate, and Justice Alexandre de Moraes. “It’s impossible to trivialize this return to dark moments,” Moraes stated.

Co-conspirators, including Bolsonaro’s running mate, former defense minister, and Navy commander, were also convicted. Evidence included records of the assassination plot brought to the presidential palace and Bolsonaro’s public spread of voter fraud misinformation. On Election Day, highway police targeted left-leaning districts, hindering voters.

The January 8, 2023, Brasília riots, where thousands of Bolsonaro supporters stormed government buildings, underscored the plot’s fallout. Despite Bolsonaro’s claim of a stolen election, a military review found no fraud. “He never intended to stage a coup d’état,” lawyer Paulo Cunha Bueno argued.

Bolsonaro’s former defense minister testified to dissuading him, exposing internal rifts. Justice Luiz Fux dissented, arguing evidence failed to directly link Bolsonaro, warning, “It would set a very serious precedent.” He noted the case’s limited five-justice panel, hinting at appeal potential.

The ruling marks Brazil’s first conviction of coup plot leaders, a historic shift in a nation with 15 military-linked coups since 1889. Bolsonaro, under house arrest as a flight risk, may seek house arrest due to health issues. His conviction cripples Brazil’s right-wing leadership, escalating tensions with the U.S., where Trump called him “a good man.”