Brazil’s former president Jair Bolsonaro was discharged from a hospital in Brasília on Friday and transferred to house arrest as he continues serving a 27-year prison sentence for attempting a coup following the 2022 election.
Brazil’s Supreme Court granted the 71-year-old permission earlier this week to serve his sentence at home due to deteriorating health. The arrangement is temporary and will be reviewed within 90 days.
Bolsonaro left DF Star hospital around 10 a.m. local time and returned to his residence in the upscale Jardim Botânico neighborhood of the capital, where he previously lived with his wife, Michelle Bolsonaro, and their daughter Laura. He had been hospitalized since March 13 with pneumonia and spent several days in intensive care due to kidney and inflammatory complications.
The former president, who governed Brazil from 2019 to 2022, was convicted of plotting with allies to remain in power after narrowly losing the presidential election to Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. Prosecutors accused him of attempting to overturn the result by decree, leading to convictions that included attempted coup and attempted violent abolition of the democratic rule of law. Bolsonaro has denied the allegations and described the case as a political witch hunt.
Strict conditions accompany his house arrest. Bolsonaro must wear an electronic ankle monitor, cannot communicate with anyone outside his home, and is barred from receiving visitors except family members, doctors and lawyers. Police will monitor the residence and protests will not be permitted nearby. Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes warned that any violation of the restrictions could send Bolsonaro back to prison regardless of his medical condition.
Bolsonaro initially served his sentence in a small room at the federal police headquarters before being transferred to a larger space at the Papuda penitentiary earlier this year. Despite his imprisonment, he remains a powerful figure in Brazilian politics. His son, Senator Flávio Bolsonaro, is polling competitively against President Lula ahead of the country’s October presidential election, though Bolsonaro himself is barred from running or participating directly in campaigns.
The decision to grant house arrest has drawn criticism from both sides of Brazil’s political divide. Bolsonaro’s supporters argue the temporary nature of the measure is unfair, while critics say the former president is receiving lenient treatment despite his past advocacy for tough penalties on criminals.
The ruling also comes as Justice de Moraes faces scrutiny over ties to the collapsed Banco Master, which was shut down in late 2025 amid fraud allegations involving political and business figures. Critics have raised concerns about potential conflicts of interest related to his wife’s previous legal work for the bank, though de Moraes has denied any wrongdoing.