Brazil's Supreme Court convicts Bolsonaro of plotting coup, sentencing him to 27 years in jail

Brazil's Supreme Court has convicted ex-President Jair Bolsonaro of plotting a coup by a 4-1 vote in a landmark case and sentenced him to 27 years in jail, drawing angry reaction from the US which pledged to respond to "this witch hunt".

Justice Carmen Lucia voted on Thursday to convict Bolsonaro on all five charges he faces, siding with justices Alexandre de Moraes and Flavio Dino.

Justice Luiz Fux was the only one dissenting so far, voting to acquit the former president over violence after Bolsonaro's defeat in October 2022 elections by leftist Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva.

"The law must apply equally to all," Lucia said as she delivered her decision, calling the trial a crucial test for Brazil’s young democracy.

Only Justice Luiz Fux has so far voted to acquit, describing the proceedings as "political."

Bolsonaro, under house arrest in Brasilia since last month, has not attended the hearings, which have gripped the nation on TV and social media.

He insists he is the victim of persecution, while his ally, US President Donald Trump, has branded the trial a "witch hunt" and retaliated with 50 percent tariffs on Brazilian imports.

On Thursday, Trump said he was unhappy about Bolsonaro's conviction.

"I watched that trial. I know him pretty well, foreign leader. I thought he was a good president of Brazil. And it's very surprising that that could happen," Trump told reporters at the White House.

"That's very much like they tried to do with me, but they didn't get away with it at all. But I can always say this: I knew him as president of Brazil. He was a good man."

The trial has polarised Brazilian society, dividing those who see it as essential accountability from those who dismiss it as a show trial.

Bolsonaro's allies are now pushing Congress to pass an amnesty law to shield him from prison.

The case has also strained US-Brazil relations.

In addition to tariffs, Washington has sanctioned Moraes and other justices, a move critics say undermines Brazil’s judiciary.

Rubio warns of US response

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, meanwhile, said the United States — which has already imposed heavy tariffs on South America's largest economy over the trial — "will respond accordingly to this witch hunt."

"The political persecutions by sanctioned human rights abuser Alexandre de Moraes continue, as he and others on Brazil's supreme court have unjustly ruled to imprison former President Jair Bolsonaro," Rubio wrote on X.

"The United States will respond accordingly to this witch hunt," he said.

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Source: TRT