In Brazil, the son of former President Bolsonaro sentenced to prison for attempting to pressure the court
Kyiv • UNN
The Supreme Court of Brazil has sentenced Eduardo Bolsonaro in absentia to four years in prison. He was found guilty of lobbying for US sanctions to pressure the judiciary.
The son of former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro, who is currently in prison, has been sentenced by the country's Supreme Court for attempts to seek U.S. intervention during his father's trial regarding last year's attempted coup d'état. This was reported by the BBC, according to UNN.
Details
41-year-old Eduardo Bolsonaro was accused last year of lobbying U.S. authorities to help the former president by imposing tariffs or sanctions against Brazil.
Former Brazilian congressman Eduardo moved to the U.S. in 2025, even before his father, who led the country from January 2019 to December 2022, was found guilty of plotting a military coup and sentenced to 27 years in prison.
On Tuesday, Eduardo wrote on social media that the sentence is "baseless and nonsensical," claiming that the judges seek to prevent him from running in elections.
He also added that due process was not followed in the case: he was never officially notified of the charges, and he only learned about the case from media reports.
The Supreme Court of Brazil sentenced him in absentia to four years and two months in prison.
Earlier, the younger Bolsonaro told the BBC that he lives in "exile" because he fears arrest if he returns to Brazil.
He has publicly sought support for his father from the Trump administration, which compared the case against the former Brazilian president to a "witch hunt."
U.S. President Donald Trump, who considers the right-wing politician Bolsonaro his ally, imposed a 50 percent tariff on goods from Brazil last July. The country's current president, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, called the move "not only wrong, but illogical."
Later, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio promised that Washington would respond to Bolsonaro's sentence. Prior to that, the Trump administration had already imposed sanctions against Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes on July 30, accusing him of abuses during the consideration of cases related to Bolsonaro.
Lula stated that Brazil is ready to negotiate with the U.S. regarding trade, but called the sanctions against de Moraes an "unacceptable" interference in the country's judicial system.
The U.S. subsequently lifted those sanctions.
Addendum
During Trump's first presidential term, a friendly relationship developed between him and Bolsonaro. In 2019, they met at the White House while both held their respective presidencies.
Subsequently, both politicians lost presidential elections and refused to publicly concede their defeat.
The elder Bolsonaro was convicted of conspiracy to overturn the results of the 2022 election. The case was linked to broader efforts to retain power, including the storming of government buildings in Brasília by his supporters in January 2023.
"This is nothing more and nothing less than an attack on a political opponent — something I know quite a bit about!" Trump stated at the time.
In response, Bolsonaro thanked the U.S. President for his support.
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