Jailhouse Shock: The Ex-President Bolsonaro Faces Time Behind Bars

He contested the legal system and the legal system triumphed.

Two months subsequent to being handed a quarter-century plus sentence for trying to “annihilate” the nation's democracy, one-time leader Jair Bolsonaro now looks headed to prison.

Anticipated Jailing

The found-guilty coup-monger – who's been under residential detention in his mansion while a set of legal procedures and appeals unfold – is broadly anticipated to be jailed in the next few days, amid increasing rumors that he will be moved to a well-known high-security prison.

Past Statements on Convicts

Throughout Bolsonaro’s 40-year public life, the conservative ex- military man exhibited scant compassion for Brazil’s prison population.

“Why should we offer those dirtbags a easy time?” he once pondered. “They deserve to be messed, end of story. That's my view.”

At another time, Bolsonaro declared: “Should you not wish to end up in prison, you simply need is not sexual assault, abduction or theft.”

Prison Location Speculation

But the prospect of Bolsonaro himself ending up in the Papuda maximum security prison in Brasília has appalled backers, four of whom this week visited the facility in an apparent attempt to discourage the high court from transferring him there.

Senator Lucas, a politician from Bolsonaro’s political party who was part of that quartet, said he anticipated the 70-year-old politician to be incarcerated in the following week and a half and feared his assigned prison could be Papuda.

Lucas claimed Bolsonaro’s acute digestive problems – the result of a life-threatening knife attack during the last presidential campaign – signified it would be hazardous to keep the former president there. “His condition is very grave. He won’t be able to cope if they move him to Papuda … It will be awful,” said the senator, who also voiced anxiety about cramped cells and the standard of prison meals.

When inspecting Papuda, Lucas noted observing cells holding forty prisoners: “It's practically one meter squared per prisoner.

“We spoke to the prisoners and they protest, naturally, of the awful meals,” added the senator.

Supporters Voice Concerns

The senator isn't the only voice voicing opinions prior to the one-time head of state's expected incarceration.

Penning in a prominent newspaper, one more backer, the ex- government official Fábio Wajngarten, deplored the “severe” finale to Bolsonaro’s “flawless” political career and claimed Brazil was about to experience “the greatest political injustice in its past”.

“It is an wrong that gnaws the spirits of countless Brazilian citizens,” Wajngarten wrote.

Mixed Public Opinion

This could be correct considering the significant support Bolsonaro holds on the conservative side. Yet his anticipated incarceration has also warmed the hearts of numerous other people who feel he should be jailed for plotting to block the elected leader from taking power – and even plotting to have him killed.

Congressman Otoni, a congressman for the sitting leader's allied group, said: “Not a soul wishes Bolsonaro to be put in a dungeon. No one wishes Bolsonaro to be sent in solitary confinement. Not a soul desires Bolsonaro not to be fed or for him to have to rest on hard ground. We desire him to get proper treatment – but proper handling while incarcerated. He cannot persist being his self-appointed guard for his whole life.”

He observed how Bolsonaro allies, who have for a long time praising the severe handling of convicts, had suddenly woken up to their privileges. “Recently has the far-right – which has always claimed that civil liberties should not be for lawbreakers – chosen to tour a jail to learn what conditions are truly like,” he said.

“He is a lawbreaker,” Otoni insisted, but that did not mean he earned “degrading, demeaning treatment”.

Possible Incarceration Environment

Despite speculation that Bolsonaro could be transferred to Papuda, which currently holds about 14,000 prisoners, his probable assigned facility looks to be a adjacent penitentiary for police officers and other “unique” inmates known as Papudinha (Small Papuda).

The accommodations are much more comfortable than those in the primary facility, although still a far cry from the opulence Bolsonaro experienced while living in the spectacular official residence, approximately a short distance away.

Based on reports, the accommodation Bolsonaro could anticipate reside in in Papudinha has about 24 sq metres – roughly the dimensions of a couple of car spots – and features a 12 square meter WC with a shower and a 12 sq metre balcony. “Bolsonaro would be authorized to have a set and also a small fridge in his cell as long as they were donated by his loved ones,” the report indicated.

Ideological Comments

Senator Lucas denounced the speculated proposal to send the one-time head of state to Papuda as “a type of payback” on the part of the presiding magistrate who led Bolsonaro’s coup trial and will determine his fate in the {

Patrick Barrett
Patrick Barrett

Elara is a seasoned gaming journalist with a passion for slot mechanics and player advocacy in the UK market.