Brazil's ex-president Collor de Mello jailed for corruption

Former Brazilian president Fernando Collor de Mello was arrested after the Supreme Court rejected his final appeal, requiring him to begin serving a nearly nine-year sentence for corruption and money laundering. Collor, Brazil’s first democratically elected president post-dictatorship, resigned in 1992 amid impeachment proceedings for alleged bribery, but his recent conviction stems from accepting about $3.5 million in bribes as a senator to facilitate contracts between a construction company and a Petrobras subsidiary. The bribes were exchanged for political support in the appointment and retention of directors at the state-owned company, as part of the wider 'Car Wash' corruption investigation that has implicated several top Brazilian politicians. His lawyers claimed he was en route to surrender when police detained him in Alagoas, where he was placed in a special prison wing. Collor joins a list of recent Brazilian presidents who have faced legal consequences, reflecting a broader pattern of political accountability in the country. The Supreme Court described his repeated legal appeals as dilatory and ordered the immediate commencement of his sentence, pending full court review.