Brazil’s former president Jair Bolsonaro, who is currently serving house arrest while challenging his conviction for an attempted coup, was taken into custody on Saturday after the Supreme Court declared him a significant flight risk.
According to the court, the far-right politician, previously sentenced to 27 years imprisonment over a plot to prevent leftist Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva from assuming office after the 2022 elections, tried to tamper with his ankle monitor in a bid to escape. The Supreme Court judge, Alexandre de Moraes, described Bolsonaro’s arrest as a preventive action as his final appeals continue.
A video released by the court captured Bolsonaro admitting that he used a soldering iron on the tracking device out of “curiosity.” The footage revealed the monitor severely burnt and damaged, though still attached to his leg.
Bolsonaro, now 70, governed Brazil from 2019 to 2022 and has been under house arrest since August, confined to a high-end residential estate in Brasília. Moraes stated that a planned rally outside the residence, reportedly organised by the former president’s eldest son, Flavio Bolsonaro, could trigger unrest and create conditions that might “create an environment conducive to his escape.”
Flavio Bolsonaro had publicly encouraged supporters to “fight for your country.” The judge added that the attempt to compromise the ankle monitor took place early Saturday and appeared to be part of a broader plan to “ensure the success of his escape, facilitated by the confusion caused by the demonstration called by his son.”
Moraes directed Bolsonaro’s legal team to provide an explanation within 24 hours. Responding online, Flavio claimed he was unsure what the authorities would do to his father and said, “If something happens to my father, Alexandre de Moraes, if my father dies in there, it’s your fault.” He suggested his father may have damaged the device either out of “act of desperation” or “shame” when receiving visitors.
The judge also noted the short distance between Bolsonaro’s residence and the US embassy, saying it increased the possibility of him seeking political asylum. Bolsonaro, a former military officer, has long aligned himself with US President Donald Trump, who previously described the former president’s trial as a “witch hunt” and imposed sanctions and tariffs over the matter. Trump reacted on Saturday by saying, “That’s too bad.”
Bolsonaro has now been transferred to a federal police facility in Brasília, where detainees undergo medical checks before being moved to a full detention centre, according to sources close to the development. Another insider shared a video with AFP showing a modest holding room equipped with a television, mini-fridge, and air conditioning.
Outside the Federal Police headquarters, reactions were mixed. A group of women celebrated his incarceration, uncorking a bottle of sparkling wine. One supporter, Ana Denise Sousa, 47, a philosophy teacher, expressed joy, calling Bolsonaro “The biggest scoundrel, the worst guy…who screwed everyone over, who (attempted) a coup, who never felt pity for anyone—and now he’s going to pay.”
However, loyalists also gathered, draped in Brazil’s national colours. “This is all political persecution,” argued Alessandro Goncalves de Almeida, a 53-year-old rideshare driver.
Bolsonaro’s ongoing legal battles have left Brazil’s conservative base without a central figure ahead of the 2026 presidential election, where Lula—now 80—has indicated he will run again. Bolsonaro’s lawyers announced their intention to challenge the detention, claiming it “could put his life at risk” given his fragile health. The former president continues to deal with medical complications from a stabbing during the 2018 campaign, which has required multiple surgeries.
Though he received praise from supporters for managing the economy during his term, Bolsonaro faced intense criticism for record levels of Amazon destruction and for dismissing Covid-19 as a “little flu.” In September, he was convicted of heading a criminal group accused of plotting to preserve his “authoritarian hold on power,” including an alleged plan involving the assassination of Lula, Vice President Geraldo Alckmin, and Justice Moraes.
What You Should Know
Jair Bolsonaro, Brazil’s former president, has been taken back into custody after the Supreme Court ruled that he posed a potential flight risk, especially following an attempt to damage his ankle monitor.
His detention adds to a long list of legal troubles stemming from allegations of trying to overturn the 2022 election results.
With Brazil preparing for the 2026 elections, Bolsonaro’s arrest leaves a major political gap among conservatives while legal tensions continue to rise around his actions and influence.
