The Supreme Federal Court's First Panel unanimously rejected Jair Bolsonaro's defense appeal on Friday (7) in the coup plot case, upholding his 27-year prison sentence. Allies of the former president, including Senator Flávio Bolsonaro and PL president Valdemar Costa Neto, reacted at the inauguration of a party headquarters in Atibaia, vowing responses to alleged persecution and betting on Bolsonaro's return to the presidency in 2026. Defenses of other defendants, like Walter Braga Netto, announced appeals including to international courts.
On Friday (7), the STF's First Panel unanimously rejected the embargos de declaração filed by Jair Bolsonaro's defense and other central defendants in the coup plot case, including former minister Walter Braga Netto, Almir Garnier Santos, Paulo Sérgio Nogueira, Alexandre Ramagem, Augusto Heleno, and Anderson Torres. Bolsonaro, sentenced to 27 years in prison for attempted coup d'état and four related crimes, has been under house arrest since August for breaching precautionary measures imposed by rapporteur Alexandre de Moraes. The ministers Alexandre de Moraes, Flávio Dino, Cristiano Zanin, and Cármen Lúcia voted against the appeals, which claimed the rapporteur's bias and insufficient time to review about 80 TB of Federal Police documents.
On the same day, during the inauguration of the PL's new regional headquarters in Atibaia (SP), presided over by lawyer Frederick Wassef, Bolsonaro's allies voiced outrage. Senator Flávio Bolsonaro, joining via video call after returning to Brasília for unspecified reasons, stated: "You can be sure: we won't give up on our Brazil. President Bolsonaro is going through this moment of persecution, but we will give a response to each one who today promotes this relentless, disloyal, and unfair persecution. Because we will go up the ramp in Brasília together for the election of our president Bolsonaro".
Bolsonaro's brother, Renato Bolsonaro, present at the event, claimed that the Justice system wants the former president to "die in jail," criticizing the lack of consideration for Bolsonaro's health, who has undergone multiple surgeries since the 2018 stabbing. PL president Valdemar Costa Neto expressed faith that Donald Trump could reverse the situation: "I have faith that Trump will change this". He advocated for amnesty for those convicted in the January 8 events and predicted a Senate majority in the 2026 elections, with the PL electing more than 25 senators and about 120 federal deputies, allied with other right-wing parties. The PL leader in the Chamber, Sóstenes Cavalcante, echoed: "No one will stop the right in 2026. Our president Jair Bolsonaro will return and we will have [...] the largest army in the Senate to put the STF in its due place".
Braga Netto's defense, through lawyer José Luis Oliveira Lima, lamented the decision and reaffirmed the general's innocence as proven in the records. They plan to file embargos infringentes within 15 days and appeal to international courts, alleging denial of defense. Garnier Santos' defense also intends a new appeal to review the main judgment. Allies fear that Moraes will order closed regime for Bolsonaro at Papuda prison, recently visited by his chief of staff.
