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He fought the legal system and the legal system prevailed.

Two months after receiving a quarter-century plus sentence for trying to “annihilate” the nation's democratic institutions, ex-president Jair Bolsonaro at last seems destined for incarceration.

Imminent Incarceration

The adjudicated instigator – who's been subject to house arrest in his mansion while a series of legal procedures and appeals play out – is widely expected to be jailed in the coming days, amid growing speculation that he will be moved to a notorious maximum security penitentiary.

Past Statements on Prisoners

Throughout Bolsonaro’s 40-year time in politics, the far-right former soldier exhibited little mercy for Brazil’s inmates.

“For what reason must we provide those lowlifes a comfortable existence?” he once pondered. “They should just get messed, period. That's my opinion.”

On another occasion, Bolsonaro stated: “Should you not wish to end up behind bars, all you have to do is to avoid sexual assault, abduction or theft.”

Incarceration Facility Speculation

But the prospect of Bolsonaro himself winding up in the Papuda high-security prison in Brasília has shocked allies, several of whom this week inspected the prison in an apparent effort to dissuade the high court from banishing him there.

Senator Lucas, a politician from Bolsonaro’s political party who was part of that quartet, said he expected the elderly leader to be incarcerated in the next 10 days and feared his location could be Papuda.

He asserted Bolsonaro’s severe digestive problems – the outcome of a almost deadly stabbing during the last political campaign – signified it would be dangerous to keep the one-time head of state there. “His condition is extremely serious. He won’t be able to handle it if they send him to Papuda … It would be terrible,” he commented, who also voiced anxiety about cramped cells and the quality of prison meals.

When inspecting Papuda, Lucas remembered seeing cells accommodating 40 prisoners: “That’s almost one square metre per detainee.

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

Supporters React

He is not the sole person speaking out ahead of the one-time head of state's anticipated detention.

Writing in a prominent publication, a different supporter, the former government official Fábio Wajngarten, bemoaned the “harsh” conclusion to Bolsonaro’s “spotless” political career and alleged Brazil was about to see “the greatest wrong in its record”.

“It represents an wrong that gnaws the spirits of many of Brazilians,” the former minister said.

Divided Popular Reaction

It is possibly accurate given the considerable backing Bolsonaro retains on the right-wing. However his anticipated incarceration has also warmed the spirits of many individuals who believe he should be imprisoned for planning to prevent his successor from becoming president – and also plotting to have him killed.

Congressman Otoni, a representative for the sitting president's Workers’ party, said: “No one wishes Bolsonaro to be sent in a dungeon. Not a soul desires Bolsonaro to be put in solitary confinement. Nobody wants Bolsonaro to go hungry or for him to have to lie on concrete. We wish him to obtain dignified treatment – but dignified care in prison. He must not continue being his personal jailer for his entire life.”

Otoni was struck by how Bolsonaro supporters, who have spent years celebrating the severe handling of prisoners, had suddenly become aware to their entitlements. “Only now has the conservative fringe – which has consistently argued that basic rights should not be for criminals – opted to tour a penitentiary to discover what circumstances are actually like,” he stated.

“He is a lawbreaker,” Otoni insisted, but that did not mean he earned “shameful, degrading handling”.

Possible Incarceration Conditions

Despite speculation that Bolsonaro could be transferred to Papuda, which currently contains about fourteen thousand inmates, his probable destination appears to be a nearby prison for law enforcement and other “special” inmates known as Papudinha (Little Papuda).

Its cells are much more pleasant than those in the primary facility, although nonetheless a world away from the comfort Bolsonaro enjoyed while living in the impressive presidential palace, around a short distance away.

As per sources, the cell Bolsonaro could anticipate occupy in Papudinha is about 260 square feet – roughly the dimensions of a couple of car spots – and includes a 12 square meter bathroom with a water facility and a 12 sq metre veranda. “He could be allowed to have a TV and also a cooler in his room as long as they were supplied by his family,” sources suggested.

Political Comments

Senator Lucas condemned the rumoured idea to send the ex-president to Papuda as “a form of revenge” on the part of the supreme court judge who presided over Bolsonaro’s legal case and will decide his future in the {