When Jair Bolsonaro served as Brazil’s far-right president, musician Fabiano Leitão often followed him through Brasília, playing *Bella Ciao*—a song associated with anti-fascist resistance—to mock him.
Earlier this year, after Bolsonaro faced accusations of planning a coup, Leitão shifted his approach, performing Chopin’s *Funeral March* instead. “It represents his political downfall, which is what we hope for,” said the 46-year-old trumpeter.
Now, as Brazil’s supreme court prepares to decide whether Bolsonaro should be imprisoned for the alleged attempt to seize power, Leitão is planning another musical tribute to mark the politician’s decline. “It’ll be joyful! It has to be joyful!” he said, testing out a lively samba tune he might use for the occasion. The lyrics of *Vou Festejar*, one of the songs under consideration, include the lines: “Cry! I won’t care! I’m going to celebrate your suffering [and] your grief!”
Leitão is among many in Brazil who are anticipating Bolsonaro’s likely conviction, along with seven other accused individuals, when the court’s decision is announced this week.
Seven years after the former paratrooper rose to power by harnessing online-driven voter discontent, and three years after he lost reelection, Bolsonaro could face the worst moment of his lengthy political career.
Starting this Tuesday, five supreme court judges will decide whether Bolsonaro orchestrated a failed coup following his 2022 election defeat to left-wing rival Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva—and, if found guilty, determine his prison sentence.
Legal analysts expect a conviction, with deliberations spanning five sessions between September 2 and 12. The charges could result in a 43-year sentence, potentially meaning life imprisonment for the 70-year-old. Bolsonaro is accused of five crimes, including leading an armed criminal group, plotting a coup, and attempting to overthrow Brazil’s democratic system.
Prosecutors claimed one part of the alleged conspiracy—dubbed *Operation Green and Yellow Dagger*—involved plans to create chaos, including the assassination of Lula, Vice President Geraldo Alckmin, and Supreme Court Judge Alexandre de Moraes, who is presiding over Bolsonaro’s trial. Investigators assert the coup plot failed because the heads of the army and air force refused to participate. Meanwhile, the navy’s commander, Adm Almir Garnier Santos, one of the seven defendants, allegedly supported the plan, accusations he denies.
“The prosecution’s case is strong—there’s substantial evidence. An acquittal seems very unlikely,” said constitutional law professor Eloísa Machado.
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