Bolsonaro sentenced to 27 years in prison for plotting Brazil coup

Jair Bolsonaro, former president of Brazil, was sentenced to 27 years and three months in prison after being found guilty of planning a military coup.

A panel of five Supreme Court justice sentenced the sentence only hours after condemning the former leader.

After losing the 2022 election to the left -wing rival Luiz Inácio Lula Da Silva, they decided that they were guilty of leading a conspiracy aimed at keeping him in power.

Four of the justice found him guilty and voted to acquit him.

Bolsonaro, who was under house arrest, did not attend the hearing, but in the past he called it “witch hunt”.

His words were repeated by US President Donald Trump, who previously applied 50% tariffs to Brazilian goods and framed them as retaliation for Bolsonaro’s prosecution.

Trump, who reacted to the guilty decision, said he found it “very surprising” and compared it with his own experience: “This is like they tried to do with me. But they never escaped.”

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the Supreme Court of Brazil, “unjustly decided to imprison former President Jair Bolsonaro” and “threatened to respond to this witch hunt”.

Bolsonaro, 70 years old, is now facing the possibility of spending the rest of his life in prison.

He is expected to claim that his lawyers should be kept under house arrest instead of being sent to jail.