Brazil Supreme Court Orders House Arrest of Bolsonaro

The US State Department has condemned a Brazilian Supreme Court order for the house arrest of former President Jair Bolsonaro, who is on trial over an alleged plot to overturn the results of the 2022 presidential election.

Justice Alexandre de Moraes issued the order Monday, saying Bolsonaro had failed to comply with restrictions previously imposed on him by the court, including use of social media and cell phones.

The court decision comes at a time of tense relations between Washington and Brasilia, with the case against right-wing populist Bolsonaro being seized on by US President Donald Trump as a threat in trade negotiations.

On Monday, the US State Department’s Bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs accused Justice Moraes of using “Brazil’s institutions to silence opposition and threaten democracy,” in a post on X.

“Putting even more restrictions on Jair Bolsonaro’s ability to defend himself in public is not a public service. Let Bolsonaro speak!,” said the post.

“The United States condemns Moraes’ order imposing house arrest on Bolsonaro and will hold accountable all those aiding and abetting sanctioned conduct,” it added.

The court order said Bolsonaro recorded speeches to be posted on other users’ social media accounts in which his ankle monitor is visible, which Moraes said defied an order prohibiting “exploitation of interviews or public or private speeches posted on third parties’ social media.”

Bolsonaro will serve house arrest at his residence and will not be allowed to have visitors, except for his attorneys and people authorized by the court. The former president is also prohibited from using a cell phone, directly or through third parties.

Bolsonaro’s eldest son Senator Flavio Bolsonaro also criticized the court’s decision, saying on CNN Brasil that his father had never defied a court order.

“We are officially in a dictatorship. This is a sad page in the history of Brazil,” he said.

In February, Jair Bolsonaro was charged in connection with an alleged coup plot to overturn the results of the 2022 election and keep his opponent, President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, from taking power. Part of the coup plot, prosecutors allege, involved a plan to potentially assassinate Lula, his vice president and a minister of the Supreme Court.

Bolsonaro has denied wrongdoing.

Trump, an ally of Bolsonaro, has criticized the trial against the former Brazilian president, calling it “politically motivated,” something authorities in Brazil have rejected. Last week, he signed executive actions imposing a 50% tariff on Brazil, after threatening to do so if the country did not end the trial against Bolsonaro.

The US has also sanctioned Justice Moraes for what it considers “serious human rights violations,” and announced visa restrictions against him and other court officials over Bolsonaro’s trial.

Bolsonaro’s supporters and some on Brazil’s right have welcomed Trump’s proactive interest in the case. But the current administration in Brasilia, and many others in Latin American nation, see it as the US directly meddling in its affairs.

President Lula last week slammed the US for imposing the tariff on Brazilian exports and for sanctioning the Supreme Court justice. He accused the American government of interfering in Brazil’s justice system, a move he called “unacceptable.”