Former Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro gestures at the garage of his residence in Brasilia on September 11, 2025. SERGIO LIMA / AFP
Brazil's Supreme Court on Thursday, September 11, sentenced firebrand ex-president Jair Bolsonaro to 27 years and three months in prison after convicting him of plotting a coup. The 70 year old risks spending the rest of his life behind bars after four out of five judges voted to convict him of plotting to overthrow Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, who defeated him in the 2022 presidential election.
While the court had already garnered the simple majority of three votes needed for Bolsonaro's conviction, it only became final after the fifth and final judge issued his decision. Bolsonaro's defense team called the sentence "incredibly excessive" and announced he would appeal, "including at the international level."
Bolsonaro's seven co-accused, including former ministers and military chiefs, were also convicted. "An armed criminal organization was formed by the defendants, who must be convicted based on the factual circumstances I consider proven," the last judge to vote, Cristiano Zanin, said.
'Witch hunt'
