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He contested the law and the law triumphed.

Sixty days following getting a quarter-century plus sentence for trying to “annihilate” Brazil’s political system, ex-president Jair Bolsonaro at last appears headed to prison.

Expected Incarceration

The adjudicated instigator – who's been subject to house arrest in his mansion while a series of judicial steps and petitions proceed – is broadly anticipated to be jailed in the next few days, amidst growing speculation that he will be moved to a well-known maximum security facility.

Previous Statements on Prisoners

Throughout Bolsonaro’s long political career, the right-wing former paratrooper displayed minimal mercy for the country's prison population.

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

At another time, Bolsonaro stated: “Unless you desire to wind up behind bars, the only thing required is not rape, abduction or theft.”

Prison Destination Discussion

Yet the idea of Bolsonaro himself ending up in the Papuda top-security prison in Brasília has horrified allies, several of whom this week inspected the facility in an apparent effort to dissuade the high court from banishing him there.

Senator Lucas, a senator from Bolsonaro’s political party who was among that group, claimed he anticipated the 70-year-old leader to be incarcerated in the next 10 days and feared his destination could be Papuda.

The senator argued Bolsonaro’s acute intestinal problems – the consequence of a life-threatening knife attack during the 2018 political campaign – meant it would be hazardous to keep the ex-leader there. “His [health] situation is highly critical. He won’t be able to handle it if they take him to Papuda … It will be awful,” he added, who also voiced anxiety about cramped cells and the quality of inmate food.

When inspecting Papuda, Lucas remembered witnessing cells containing four dozen prisoners: “It's almost one square meter per prisoner.

“We spoke to the inmates and they protest, naturally, of the terrible cuisine,” continued the senator.

Backers Voice Concerns

Lucas is not the only voice voicing opinions ahead of the one-time head of state's predicted imprisonment.

Writing in a major daily, another ally, the former government official Fábio Wajngarten, lamented the “severe” finale to Bolsonaro’s “spotless” time in office and claimed Brazil was about to see “the biggest wrong in its history”.

“It is an wrong that erodes the hearts of millions Brazilian citizens,” Wajngarten wrote.

Varied General Reaction

That may be true given the significant support Bolsonaro holds on the conservative side. However his expected imprisonment has also gladdened the hearts of numerous individuals who think he deserves to be imprisoned for planning to block his successor from becoming president – and also plotting to have him killed.

Congressman Otoni, a representative for the current administration's Workers’ party, said: “No one desires Bolsonaro to be put in a hole. Not a soul wants Bolsonaro to be placed in segregation. Not a soul wishes Bolsonaro not to be fed or for him to have to rest on hard ground. We want him to get proper handling – but respectful care while incarcerated. He must not continue being his self-appointed guard for his whole life.”

Otoni was struck by how Bolsonaro supporters, who have long celebrating the harsh handling of prisoners, had suddenly become aware to their entitlements. “Only now has the far-right – which has consistently argued that human rights should not be for criminals – decided to tour a prison to find out what circumstances are really like,” he remarked.

“The former president is a offender,” the congressman maintained, but that did not mean he merited “humiliating, insulting treatment”.

Likely Incarceration Conditions

Regardless of speculation that Bolsonaro could be sent to Papuda, which presently houses about thousands of detainees, his more likely location appears to be a nearby jail for police officers and other “unique” inmates referred to as Papudinha (Little Papuda).

Its cells are far more pleasant than those in the primary facility, although nonetheless a world away from the comfort Bolsonaro enjoyed while living in the spectacular leader's home, around 12 miles away.

Based on sources, the cell Bolsonaro could anticipate reside in in Papudinha has about 260 square feet – about the area of vehicle spaces – and includes a 12 sq metre bathroom with a bathing area and a 12 sq metre terrace. “He could be authorized to have a television and also a small fridge in his room as long as they were donated by his family,” the report suggested.

Partisan Reactions

The lawmaker denounced the speculated idea to send the one-time head of state to Papuda as “a form of retaliation” on the part of the judicial authority who led Bolsonaro’s coup trial and will rule on his future in the {