Brazil’s Bolsonaro arrested ‘preventively’ ahead of prison term

Brazil’s former president Jair Bolsonaro has been arrested “preventively” before his upcoming prison sentence starts, media outlets in the South American country reported on Saturday.

This is not the enforcement of the sentence imposed by the Supreme Federal Court for attempted coup, but a measure to “ensure public order,” according to the G1 news website and others.

There was an “increased flight risk” because Bolsonaro, 70, allegedly violated the conditions of his electronic ankle bracelet, the outlet quoted federal judge Alexandre de Moraes as saying.

Bolsonaro was sentenced to more than 27 years in prison in September or an attempted coup following his 2022 election defeat. However, the verdict is not yet final. Observers had assumed that he could begin serving his sentence next week.

On Friday, Bolsonaro’s son, Senator Flávio Bolsonaro, called for a nighttime vigil in front of his father’s house.

According to G1, police classified the planned gathering of Bolsonaro’s supporters as a risk to both participants and law enforcement officers.

Bolsonaro was reportedly taken into custody at around 6 am (1000 GMT) in Brasília and brought to the federal police headquarters, where he was placed in a special room for former heads of state and government officials.

The ex-president had already been under house arrest since August for violating court orders.

The police said on Saturday morning that they had “executed an arrest warrant for pretrial detention in accordance with a decision by the Supreme Federal Court,” but did not name the former president.

Bolsonaro’s defence team had requested on Friday that the sentence be served under house arrest, citing health issues of their client.