Former Brazilian president sentenced to 27 years by top court over coup attempt
Brazil’s Supreme Court has sentenced former president Jair Bolsonaro to 27 years and three months in prison on charges linked to an attempted military coup following his 2022 election defeat to President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, reports a Kazinform News Agency correspondent.
On Thursday, a panel of five Supreme Court justices delivered the ruling, with four voting to convict the 70-year-old former leader. Justice Alexandre de Moraes, who oversaw the case, described Bolsonaro as “the leader of a coup plot and of a criminal organisation.” Justices Flavio Dino, Carmen Lucia, and Cristiano Zanin supported the conviction, while Justice Luiz Fux dissented, calling for acquittal.
Justice Carmen Lucia noted that the evidence demonstrated Bolsonaro acted “with the purpose of eroding democracy and institutions.” The charges included staging a coup, leading an armed criminal organisation, attempting the violent abolition of democratic rule of law, incitement to violence, and threatening state property and heritage.
Bolsonaro, currently under house arrest, did not attend the hearings. He had earlier been banned from holding public office until 2030 for spreading unfounded claims about Brazil’s electronic voting system.
Seven of Bolsonaro’s close allies were also sentenced, among them his 2022 running mate and former defence minister Walter Braga Netto, ex-Justice Minister Anderson Torres, and senior military aides.
The verdict has also stirred international reaction, particularly in Washington. U.S. president Donald Trump, a close ally of Bolsonaro, tied his recent proposal of a 50% tariff on Brazilian imports to the court case, dismissing the proceedings as a “witch hunt.”
“I watched the trial, I know him very well,” Trump told reporters outside the White House on Thursday. “As a foreign leader, I thought he was a good president. It is very surprising that this could happen. It's very much what they tried to do with me, but they didn’t get away with it at all. He was a good man, and I don’t see that happening.”
Despite his legal troubles, Bolsonaro has signaled ambitions to remain a central figure in Brazilian politics. Observers suggest he is expected to choose a political heir to challenge President Lula in the next election.
Earlier, it was reported that the trial of former First Lady Kim Keon Hee on corruption charges is scheduled to formally open later this month, following her indictment by special counsel Min Joong-ki at the end of August.
