Jailhouse Shock: Brazil's FormerPresident Jair Bolsonaro Faces Life Behind Bars

He battled the legal system and justice triumphed.

Sixty days after getting a quarter-century plus sentence for attempting to “eradicate” the nation's democracy, former president Jair Bolsonaro at last seems jail-bound.

Expected Imprisonment

The convicted instigator – who has been subject to house arrest in his estate while a series of court processes and petitions play out – is largely predicted to be incarcerated in the coming days, during increasing talk that he will be sent to a infamous maximum security prison.

Past Comments on Prisoners

Throughout Bolsonaro’s 40-year political career, the right-wing ex- soldier displayed minimal mercy for the country's prison population.

“What’s the need to offer those scoundrels a comfortable existence?” he once mused. “They should just get fucked, end of story. That’s what I reckon.”

In another instance, Bolsonaro declared: “Should you not wish to end up there, you simply need is not rape, kidnap or theft.”

Jail Destination Speculation

But the possibility of Bolsonaro himself ending up in the Papuda prison maximum security prison in Brasília has shocked allies, several of whom this week visited the prison in an obvious attempt to dissuade the supreme court from transferring him there.

Senator Lucas, a lawmaker from Bolsonaro’s allied group who was among that group, claimed he expected the 70-year-old politician to be jailed in the following week and a half and feared his location could be Papuda.

The senator argued Bolsonaro’s severe intestinal problems – the outcome of a almost deadly knife attack during the 2018 presidential presidential campaign – signified it would be hazardous to keep the former president there. “His condition is very grave. He won’t be able to handle it if they send him to Papuda … It could be dreadful,” said the senator, who also expressed concern about packed cells and the standard of jail cuisine.

During his tour Papuda, Lucas recalled observing cells containing 40 prisoners: “That is practically one square metre per detainee.

“We conversed to the inmates and they complain, of course, of the horrible food,” added the senator.

Backers Speak Out

The senator isn't the lone figure speaking out prior to the ex-leader's expected incarceration.

Penning in a leading daily, one more backer, the ex- government official Fábio Wajngarten, lamented the “brutal” finale to Bolsonaro’s “flawless” public service and claimed Brazil was about to experience “the largest wrong in its history”.

“It is an injustice that erodes the spirits of millions Brazilian citizens,” Wajngarten wrote.

Varied Popular Opinion

This could be correct due to the substantial support Bolsonaro holds on the conservative side. But his anticipated imprisonment has also gladdened the hearts of numerous others who feel he should be incarcerated for planning to prevent the elected leader from becoming president – and even scheming to have him murdered.

The lawmaker, a representative for the current administration's allied group, commented: “Not a soul wants Bolsonaro to be put in a dungeon. Nobody wishes Bolsonaro to be sent in isolation. Nobody wishes Bolsonaro to lack food or for him to have to rest on hard ground. We wish him to receive proper treatment – but dignified care in prison. He must not persist being his personal jailer for his entire life.”

The congressman noted how Bolsonaro supporters, who have for a long time applauding the severe treatment of inmates, had unexpectedly realized to their privileges. “Recently has the conservative fringe – which has repeatedly argued that human rights are not for criminals – chosen to tour a jail to discover what conditions are actually like,” he remarked.

“He is a offender,” the congressman maintained, but that did not mean he earned “degrading, insulting handling”.

Potential Jail Conditions

In spite of talk that Bolsonaro could be moved to Papuda, which now holds about 14,000 inmates, his more likely assigned facility seems to be a nearby jail for officers and other “unique” inmates referred to as Papudinha (Little Papuda).

Its cells are considerably more pleasant than those in the primary facility, although nonetheless a world away from the luxury Bolsonaro had while occupying the spectacular leader's home, about a short distance away.

According to reports, the accommodation Bolsonaro could anticipate reside in in Papudinha has about 260 square feet – about the area of two parking spaces – and contains a 12 sq metre WC with a water facility and a 12 square meter veranda. “The ex-president might be authorized to have a set and even a cooler in his quarters as long as they were provided by his relatives,” sources indicated.

Partisan Reactions

Senator Lucas condemned the rumoured idea to send the former leader to Papuda as “an act of revenge” on the part of the supreme court judge who oversaw Bolsonaro’s coup trial and will decide his future in the {

Amy Adams
Amy Adams

A seasoned casino analyst with over a decade of experience in slot game mechanics and gambling industry trends.