Image Credentials: Image Title: Brazil’s Former President Bolsonaro Found Guilty of Plotting Military Coup Source: (Sora.ChatGPT) Date: September 2025. Attribution: Created using AI-generated imagery (Sora.ChatGPT), this does not depict a real-world scene.
By Staff Writer | Open Chronicle
BRASÍLIA — Brazil’s Supreme Court has found former President Jair Bolsonaro guilty of leading a conspiracy to stage a military coup following his defeat in the 2022 presidential election. The landmark ruling marks one of the most significant judicial actions in the country’s modern political history and could result in a prison sentence of more than 40 years.
In a session on Thursday, three of the five justices on the court’s panel voted to convict Bolsonaro on charges including attempting to stage a coup, leading an armed criminal organization, and attempting to violently abolish the democratic rule of law. One justice voted to acquit, while the final judge has yet to cast a vote.
The 70-year-old far-right leader was accused of orchestrating a plot to remain in power after losing the election to his left-wing rival, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. Although the plan ultimately failed to gain sufficient military backing, it culminated in the violent storming of Brazil’s Congress, Supreme Court, and presidential palace by thousands of his supporters on January 8, 2023.
#Bolsonaro CONVICTED by #Brazil supreme court
Former president and Trump ally found GUILTY of plotting a #coup in 2022
He says it’s a witch hunt – trial overseen by anti-free speech Justice Moraes pic.twitter.com/LCAuGEVRyf
— Michael Ashura (@MichaelAshura) September 11, 2025
Justice Cármen Lúcia, who cast the decisive vote, stated that Bolsonaro had directly triggered the “insurgency” that sought to undermine Brazil’s democratic institutions. She found him guilty on all five charges, including two counts related to property damage during the riots.
Bolsonaro, who did not attend the trial, has consistently denied the allegations, labeling the proceedings a politically motivated “witch hunt.” His lawyers cited health concerns—stemming from a 2018 stabbing—as the reason for his absence. He has been under house arrest since early August after police alleged he and his son, Eduardo, attempted to interfere with the judicial process.
The prosecution argued that Bolsonaro began laying the groundwork for a coup long before the January 8 attacks. He reportedly proposed a military takeover to top commanders, spread baseless doubts about Brazil’s electoral system, and was aware of a plan to assassinate President Lula, his vice-presidential candidate, and a Supreme Court justice.
The final vote from Justice Cristiano Zanin is still pending. If two of the five judges vote to acquit, Bolsonaro’s defense team can request a review by the full 11-member Supreme Court.
Sentencing is scheduled for Friday. A harsh penalty would send a powerful message about accountability for attacks on democracy, not only in Brazil but across Latin America, where several countries have faced similar threats to institutional stability.
The verdict has deepened Brazil’s political divisions. While many celebrate it as a victory for the rule of law, Bolsonaro’s supporters continue to decry what they see as judicial persecution.
As the nation awaits the final judgment, the case underscores the ongoing tension between democracy and authoritarianism in one of the world’s largest democracies.