Former Brazilian President Begins Serving 27-Year Prison Sentence

SadaNews - Former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro has begun serving a 27-year prison sentence after the Supreme Court upheld his conviction for plotting a coup.

Judge Alexandre de Moraes issued a ruling to commence the execution of the sentence against Bolsonaro at the federal police complex in Brasília, where he has been held since last Saturday.

The decision came after a document published by the Supreme Court on Tuesday revealed that Bolsonaro's conviction has become final, and no further appeal can be made.

The 70-year-old Bolsonaro had been under house arrest since early August, but the court ordered his preventive detention due to "indications of a potential escape attempt" during a demonstration his supporters planned for last Saturday near his residence in the capital.

Judge de Moraes stated that Bolsonaro "deliberately and knowingly tampered with the electronic monitoring equipment," and burned his electronic bracelet.

The Supreme Court convicted Bolsonaro last September of leading a "criminal organization" that conspired to ensure "his dictatorial grip on power" after his leftist opponent Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva won the October 2022 elections.