Brazil's former president Bolsonaro ordered to wear electronic ankle monitor: What does it do?

Bolsonaro has also been barred from using social media or contacting other individuals who are under investigation by the Supreme Federal Court

Published on: Jul 18, 2025, 20:02:58 IST

By HT News Desk

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Brazil’s Supreme Court has ordered former president Jair Bolsonaro to wear an electronic ankle monitor, his press office confirmed on Friday, following police raids on his residence and party headquarters in Brasilia, Associated Press reported.

Bolsonaro has been accused of allegedly leading an attempt to stage a coup to overturn the results of the 2022 elections. (REUTERS)

Bolsonaro has been accused of leading an attempt to stage a coup to overturn the results of the 2022 elections, in wherein he was defeated.

Bolsonaro has also been barred from using social media or contacting other individuals who are under investigation by the Supreme Federal Court. This includes his son, Eduardo Bolsonaro, who is a Brazilian lawmaker and lives in the United States. Eduardo also has close ties with US President Donald Trump.

What does an electronic ankle monitor do?

An ankle monitor is usually used for electronic monitoring of the person wearing it. It is used to track the wearer's movements and can have a GPS which relays this information through radio transmission.

This means that the wearer's location is known to the authorities at all times. Individuals who are under trial and are at the risk of fleeing, or persons who have been recently released on bail are usually directed to wear these monitors.

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.

While the statement did not name Bolsonaro, live aerial footage showed by local broadcasters showed federal police vehicles outside his Brasilia residence.

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.

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