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Bolsonaro Begins 27-Year Prison Term 11/26 06:08
BRASILIA, Brazil (AP) -- Former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro on
Tuesday started his 27-year prison sentence for leading a coup attempt, to the
surprise of many in the South American nation who doubted he would ever end up
behind bars.
Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes, who has overseen the case, ruled
Bolsonaro will remain in custody after being preemptively arrested on Saturday.
Supporters and detractors of the embattled leader gathered outside the
federal police headquarters after the order was issued, some calling for
Bolsonaro's release and others toasting to his imprisonment.
The far-right leader had been under house arrest since August and was taken
in on Saturday after trying to break his ankle monitor. Bolsonaro blamed
"hallucinations", a claim that de Moraes dismissed in his preemptive arrest
order.
Bolsonaro will not have any contact with the few other inmates at the
federal police headquarters. His 12-square-meter room has a bed, a private
bathroom, air conditioning, a TV set and a desk, according to federal police.
He will have free access to his doctors and lawyers, but others will have to
get their access approved by the Supreme Court.
Exhausted appeals
De Moraes determined on Tuesday that Bolsonaro's defense had exhausted all
appeals of his conviction. His lawyers disagree and promise to keep filing
requests for house arrest due to the former leader's poor health. The Supreme
Court justice has already ruled against it, but that decision could be revised
if circumstances change.
"There is no legal possibility of any other appeal," de Moraes said in his
decision.
Brazil's criminal law also could have allowed the 70-year-old to be
transferred to a local penitentiary or to a prison room in a military facility
in the capital Brasilia.
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 defeat.
The plot included plans to kill President Luiz Incio Lula da Silva, Vice
President Geraldo Alckmin and Justice de Moraes. The plan also involved
encouraging an insurrection in early 2023.
The former president was also found guilty of charges including leading an
armed criminal organization and attempting the violent abolition of the
democratic rule of law.
Bolsonaro has always denied wrongdoing.
Champagne and tears
Outside the federal police building, about a dozen Bolsonaro supporters
dressed in yellow and green of the Brazilian flag cried foul and asked Congress
to pass a bill to give the former president and his allies some kind of
amnesty. Some chose to insult de Moraes, the media and Lula supporters. A few
still pleaded for help from U.S. President Donald Trump against Brazil's left.
"I am outraged. This is the best president of my life, my friend. This is a
great injustice," said Elaine Leandro, 61, a hard core Bolsonaro supporter who
says she will come to the federal police headquarters every day until he is
released. "I hate you, Alexandre de Moraes. You deserve hell."
Sao Paulo city councilor Keit Lima, 34, had very different feelings. She
brought champagne and shared it with other Black women who had come from a
march in Brasilia to celebrate Bolsonaro's imprisonment.
"Today we can breath and continue fighting for our democracy," Lima said.
"Our democracy is young, but we want it to live long."
In other Brazilian cities, supporters prayed for the former president while
detractors celebrated.
Other convictions
Two others convicted, Augusto Heleno and Paulo Srgio Nogueira, both Army
generals, were sent to a military facility in Brasilia to start serving their
sentences. Former Justice Minister Anderson Torres is now imprisoned at the
Papuda penitentiary, also in Brazil's capital.
Adm. Almir Garnier will serve his term at Navy facilities in Brasilia.
Bolsonaro's running mate and former Defense Minister Walter Braga Netto,
another army general, will remain in prison at a military facility in Rio de
Janeiro.
De Moraes also confirmed that lawmaker and former head of Brazil's
intelligence agency Alexandre Ramagem is on the loose in the United States.
The judge also ordered lower house Speaker Hugo Motta to strip Ramagem of
his seat.
Motta has the power to put a possible amnesty for Bolsonaro to a vote,
though party leaders have said in recent months that it is very unlikely
because it would be struck down later by the Supreme Court if approved.
Bolsonaro remains a key figure in Brazilian politics, despite being
ineligible to run for office until at least until 2030 after a separate ruling
by Brazil's top electoral court. The first day of his prison sentence should
mark an extension of that deadline to 2033.
Polls show he would be a competitive candidate in next year's vote if
allowed to run.
US tensions
The former president is an ally of Trump, who has called the trial of the
former Brazilian leader a "witch hunt." Bolsonaro was mentioned in a July order
by the U.S. administration to raise tariffs on several Brazilian exports by 50%.
Relations between the two countries have improved since, with Lula and Trump
meeting in Malaysia at the ASEAN summit in October. Most of those higher
tariffs have been dropped.
The U.S. also imposed sanctions on de Moraes and other Brazilian officials.
The measures in support of Bolsonaro did not have their desired effect and
the trial proceeded nevertheless. Lula's popularity was boosted by the
perception that he was defending Brazilian sovereignty.
Bolsonaro is not the first former president to spend time behind bars. His
predecessor Michel Temer (2016-2018) and his successor Lula have also been to
prison. Fernando Collor de Mello, who governed between 1990 and 1992, is
currently under house arrest due to a corruption conviction.
Bolsonaro is the first to be convicted of attempting a coup.
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