Brazil’s Supreme Court has forced ex-president Jair Bolsonaro to wear an electronic ankle monitor, his press office confirmed on Friday, after police raided his home and party headquarters in Brasilia, Associated Press reported.
Charged with Undermining 2022 Election Results
Bolsonaro has been charged with orchestrating violence that aimed to overthrow the outcome of the 2022 elections, in which he lost.
Bolsonaro has also been blocked from using social media or communicating with other people who are themselves under investigation by the Supreme Federal Court. These include his son, Eduardo Bolsonaro, a Brazilian congressman who resides in the United States. Eduardo has close relationships with US President Donald Trump as well.
Purpose of the Ankle Monitor
An ankle monitor is typically employed for electronic monitoring of the wearer. It tracks the movements of the wearer and may incorporate a GPS that transmits this data via radio transmission.
This implies that the location of the wearer is known to the police at all times. Persons on trial who are likely to abscond, or individuals who have just been granted bail are most often instructed to wear the monitors.
Supreme Court Orders Precautionary Measures
Officers in Brasilia carried out “two search and seizure warrants”, apart from other precautionary measures, in compliance with an order of the Supreme Court, a police statement said, according to AP.
Although the report did not identify Bolsonaro, live aerial coverage reported by local media revealed federal police cars near his Brasilia home.
Prosecutor-General Accuses Bolsonaro of Inciting Insurrection
Brazil’s prosecutor-general Paulo Gonet had on Tuesday said in a report to the Supreme Court that “the defendant (Bolsonaro) acted systematically, throughout his mandate and after his defeat at the polls, to incite insurrection and the destabilization of the democratic rule of law.”
The former president has described the trial as a “witch hunt” in a post on X.
