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He fought justice and justice prevailed.

A couple of months subsequent to being handed a quarter-century plus sentence for attempting to “annihilate” the nation's democracy, one-time leader Jair Bolsonaro finally seems headed to prison.

Imminent Imprisonment

The found-guilty coup-monger – who has been subject to house arrest in his mansion while a series of judicial steps and challenges play out – is largely predicted to be jailed in the coming days, amid increasing talk that he will be sent to a infamous top-security penitentiary.

Past Comments on Convicts

Over Bolsonaro’s long time in politics, the conservative ex- soldier displayed scant sympathy for the country's prison population.

“Why should we give these dirtbags a comfortable existence?” he once mused. “They deserve to be screwed, end of story. That's my opinion.”

On another occasion, Bolsonaro proclaimed: “If you don’t want to wind up there, the only thing required is to avoid rape, kidnap or rob.”

Prison Facility Debate

Yet the possibility of Bolsonaro himself ending up in the Papuda prison maximum security prison in Brasília has shocked allies, four of whom this week visited the facility in an seeming attempt to discourage the high court from sending him there.

The senator, a politician from Bolsonaro’s political party who was one of the visitors, claimed he predicted the 70-year-old leader to be incarcerated in the next 10 days and was concerned his location could be Papuda.

The senator argued Bolsonaro’s serious intestinal ailments – the result of a life-threatening knife attack during the 2018 political campaign – meant it would be dangerous to keep the former president there. “His [health] situation is very grave. He will not be able to handle it if they take him to Papuda … It could be awful,” he added, who also voiced anxiety about overcrowded cells and the quality of jail cuisine.

During his tour Papuda, Lucas remembered observing cells containing four dozen prisoners: “It's almost one square metre per detainee.

“We conversed to the convicts and they grumble, naturally, of the terrible meals,” added the senator.

Supporters React

He is not the only voice voicing opinions before the one-time head of state's anticipated detention.

Writing in a major daily, another ally, the former communications minister Fábio Wajngarten, deplored the “brutal” finale to Bolsonaro’s “spotless” public service and claimed Brazil was about to experience “the largest political injustice in its past”.

“This is an unfairness that gnaws the spirits of countless people in Brazil,” he stated.

Mixed Public Reaction

It is possibly true due to the significant support Bolsonaro retains on the Brazilian right. Yet his anticipated imprisonment has also warmed the spirits of many other people who believe he ought to be imprisoned for planning to prevent the elected leader from taking power – and also plotting to have him killed.

Congressman Otoni, a congressman for the current administration's allied group, commented: “Nobody wishes Bolsonaro to be placed in a dark cell. Nobody wants Bolsonaro to be sent in segregation. Not a soul wants Bolsonaro not to be fed or for him to have to lie on concrete. We want him to receive proper care – but dignified handling behind bars. He must not carry on being his self-appointed guard for his entire life.”

Otoni was struck by how Bolsonaro allies, who have spent years praising the severe conditions of convicts, had suddenly become aware to their privileges. “Just now has the extreme right – which has always argued that basic rights were not for offenders – decided to visit a jail to find out what circumstances are really like,” he remarked.

“The former president is a lawbreaker,” he affirmed, but that did not mean he merited “shameful, insulting conduct”.

Likely Prison Environment

Despite rumors that Bolsonaro could be sent to Papuda, which now houses about thousands of detainees, his expected location looks to be a close prison for law enforcement and other “special” inmates known as Papudinha (Little Papuda).

The accommodations are far more adequate than those in the larger jail, although nevertheless a world away from the comfort Bolsonaro enjoyed while living in the spectacular official residence, approximately 20 kilometers away.

Based on sources, the cell Bolsonaro could expect to occupy in Papudinha has about 260 square feet – about the size of two parking spaces – and features a 12 square meter bathroom with a water facility and a 130 square foot balcony. “He could be allowed to have a set and also a cooler in his quarters as long as they were provided by his loved ones,” the report stated.

Political Responses

Senator Lucas denounced the rumoured idea to send the ex-president to Papuda as “an act of retaliation” on the part of the presiding magistrate who presided over Bolsonaro’s proceedings and will decide his outcome in the {