Brazil Former President Jair Bolsonaro said he damaged his electronic ankle bracelet with a soldering iron the night before his arrest. “I held a hot iron over it. Out of curiosity,” Bolsonaro told officers examining the device, as seen in a video released by the Supreme Court. When asked if it was an iron, Bolsonaro replied: “No, a soldering iron.” He emphasized that he did not want to take off the ankle bracelet that he had to wear while under house arrest.
In the video, the radio’s plastic casing, which is estimated to be around ten centimeters in size, can be seen charred around Bolsonaro’s ankle. According to the official, the actual device “appears to be intact.”
Bolsonaro has been under house arrest since August for violating a court order. He was arrested Saturday morning (local time) on suspicion of “certain flight risks” and “threats to public order”. This is not the execution of his attempted coup sentence, for which he was sentenced to more than 27 years in prison in September. The decision is not final and enforcement is expected to take place next week.
Judges fear Bolsonaro’s escape
According to investigators, the decision to arrest was based on new findings from the federal police. Shortly after midnight, the ankle bracelet triggered an alarm, indicating an attempt at manipulation. In addition, the former president’s son, Senator Flávio Bolsonaro, previously also called for a night vigil in front of his father’s house.
According to federal judge Alexandre de Moraes, this tumultuous series of “vigils” could complicate house arrest and allow Bolsonaro to flee under the cover of chaos – perhaps to the nearest embassy in a country friendly to him, such as the United States, where he could then barricade himself away from prosecutors. Moraes then decided to detain Bolsonaro as a precaution.
US President Donald Trump’s administration is backing right-wing conservative former military figure Bolsonaro, who has yet to accept his defeat in 2022 elections and, the Supreme Court believes, is plotting a coup with military and political allies against the government of his left-leaning successor, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. Washington accused Brazil’s judiciary of waging a politically motivated campaign against Bolsonaro.
Following the former president’s arrest, US Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau described nationally known Judge Moraes as a “human rights violator” who had embarrassed the Supreme Court with his “provocative” actions. “The US is deeply concerned by its latest attacks on the rule of law and political stability in Brazil,” Landau wrote on Platform X.
Lawyers defend Bolsonaro
Bolsonaro’s lawyer, Paulo Cunha Bueno, did not provide an explanation for the damage to the ankle bracelet. “Prayer Prayer” is protected by the constitution as a religious event, he stressed. Despite the published evidence regarding this matter Supreme Court and Bolsonaro’s statement about the use of a soldering iron, the lawyer spoke of a distorted judicial representation, by which “the unjustified is intended to be justified.”
© dpa-infocom, dpa:251123-930-328271/1
