AP
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The fate of former Brazilian president, Jia Bolsonaro, was on balance on Tuesday.
The Supreme Court panel has scheduled sessions from September 12th to September 12th to determine whether the far-right former leader is guilty of trying to overturn the 2022 presidential election outcome.
Bolsonaro, who denied fraud, was charged with five counts related to attempting to set the coup. He repeatedly said he was under house arrest and that the trial was politically motivated.
That debate moved forward with President Donald Trump. President Donald Trump directly linked 50% tariffs on imported Brazilian goods to the judicial situation of his allies. Trump called the lawsuit a “witch hunt” against his political enemy, sparking a nationalist response from many Brazilian politicians.
Bolsonaro is accused of attempting two counts, including performances of coups, involvement in armed criminal organizations, violent abolition of the democratic rule of law and destruction of national property.
Convicted on the charges of a coup plot alone will result in a maximum of 12 years in prison.
Bolsonaro’s seven other close allies are being tried alongside the former president, including the former president and his former running mate, Defence Minister Walter Braga Net and former Defence Minister Paulo Sergio Nogueira.
Brazil’s top election courts have already banned Bolsonaro from running in the election, playing in elections through abuse of power until 2030, raising unfounded questions about the country’s electronic voting system.
An investigation by the federal police said efforts to spread fake news about Brazil’s voting system were part of a multifaceted plan for Bolsonaro to serve.
Part of the plot included a plan to kill Lula and a Supreme Court judge, prosecutors argue. It also said the January 8 riot was an attempt to force military intervention and drive away the new president when Bolsonaro supporters looted the government’s top building a week after Lula took office.
Prosecutors presented the case in July, and National Defense concluded the debate in mid-August.
Shortly afterwards, police accused Bolsonaro and his son Eduardo of obstructing justice in another incident. They said the former president once wanted to flee to Argentina and demand political asylum.
Despite holding a seat in Brazilian parliament, Eduardo Bolsonaro has moved to the United States earlier this year to seek sanctions against Justice Alexandre de Moraes, who oversees his father’s lawsuit. The Trump administration imposed such measures in late July.
Authorities view Bolsonaro as a flight risk. The Supreme Court ordered further safety measures until it reached the verdict and ruling stage. On Saturday, de Moraes allowed inspections of vehicles leaving Bolsonaro’s residence, requiring in-person monitoring of the area surrounding his home.
Experts have named Bolsonaro’s trial “historic” and stressed that it was the first time a senior official accused of an attempted coup has been put on criminal trial.
The military dictatorship ruled Brazil for more than 20 years between 1964 and 1985. This is the time when Bolsonaro expressed his nostalgia. The government passed a radical amnesty law in 1979, with Brazil never prosecuting any of the people responsible for the widespread human rights violations of that era.
Brazil’s violent past is not yet fully considered, but the trial shows a historical departure from immunity, said Lucas Figueid, author of several books on the country’s recent dictatorship.
“History will know if it’s 100% successful, but what we’re seeing today is a breaking movement in the tradition of military coups,” he said.
