Brazil’s Bolsonaro says ‘hallucinations’ led him to violate ankle monitoring and cause his arrest

Former Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro has claimed he tampered with his ankle monitor due to hallucinations and a nervous breakdown, according to court documents released Sunday. The 70-year-old far-right leader made these statements during a virtual meeting with an assistant judge on his first full day in jail.

Bolsonaro was taken into preventive custody on Saturday after Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes ordered his arrest, citing concerns that the former president posed a flight risk. The detention came after authorities detected that Bolsonaro had tampered with his electronic monitoring device shortly after midnight.

“He said he had ‘hallucinations’ that there was some wire tap in the ankle monitoring, so he tried to uncover it,” assistant judge Luciana Sorrentino reported following her online meeting with Bolsonaro. The court document noted that Bolsonaro attributed his behavior to a recent change in medication and ongoing sleep difficulties.

According to the report, Bolsonaro told the judge he “did not remember having a breakdown of this magnitude on another occasion” and was experiencing “a certain paranoia” that drove him to investigate the monitoring device. He claimed that despite being at home with his daughter, elder brother, and an aide, none of them witnessed his tampering with the ankle monitor.

Two of Bolsonaro’s doctors visited him Sunday morning and later issued a statement confirming they had suspended the medication allegedly causing his troubles. They assured the public that the former president is physically well despite the circumstances.

The detention marks a significant development in Bolsonaro’s legal troubles. In September, a panel of Brazil’s Supreme Court ruled that he had attempted to stage a coup to remain in power after his electoral defeat by Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva in 2022. Bolsonaro was subsequently sentenced to 27 years in prison for these actions, though he had been serving under house arrest with electronic monitoring before Saturday’s incident.

The same judicial panel is scheduled to vote Monday on whether to uphold the preventive detention order. Bolsonaro’s legal team has attempted to argue that he should remain under house arrest due to health concerns, but Justice de Moraes has previously rejected similar requests.

Current President Lula, speaking from the G20 summit in South Africa, offered brief comments on his predecessor’s jailing. “The court ruled, that’s decided. Everyone knows what he did,” Lula told journalists, keeping his remarks minimal but pointed.

Justice de Moraes authorized former first lady Michelle Bolsonaro to visit her husband, which she did for approximately two hours on Sunday. She did not address the press following her visit to the federal police headquarters where Bolsonaro is being held.

The arrest has further polarized an already divided Brazil. Outside the detention facility in Brasilia, both supporters and critics gathered. Pro-Bolsonaro protesters displayed banners demanding the removal of both Lula and de Moraes from office, while opponents celebrated the former president’s detention.

The political division was visible across the country. In São Paulo, protesters paraded a giant inflatable depicting Bolsonaro in prison garb down the city’s main avenue. Meanwhile, in Rio de Janeiro, participants in the city’s Pride parade incorporated celebrations of Bolsonaro’s detention into their festivities.

Bolsonaro’s preventive detention represents the latest chapter in Brazil’s ongoing political drama as the country continues to grapple with the aftermath of the 2022 election and the alleged coup attempt that followed.