The former Brazilian president taken into custody after being considered a risk of fleeing
Bolsonaro has been arrested after authorities found he posed a definite escape threat while under house arrest.
The ex-president was found guilty of planning a government overthrow in last fall and given more than a 27-year term in incarceration, but he remained under house arrest pending legal challenges.
High Court Judge Alexandre de Moraes said the move to detain the 70-year-old politician was a precautionary step after "new facts" emerged.
This involved trying to remove his ankle monitor and a call for a supporters' gathering that could "allow for a possible escape.
Legal Document Reveals Escape Risks
In a filing authorising the custody, Justice Moraes said data from the facility tracking Bolsonaro's house arrest suggested the one-time head of state's "intention to break the surveillance device to guarantee victory in his getaway".
This, it said, would be made easier by the chaos caused by the gathering called by his son.
His child, Flávio, who holds office as a senator, called for a meeting of his backers near Bolsonaro's home to take place on the weekend.
His son wrote on online platforms on the previous day: Will you battle for your country, or watch it all from your smartphone there on your sofa? I urge you to battle with us."
He said the vigil would be so followers could "pray for his health and for the restoration of democratic rule in our nation."
Diplomatic Refuge Fears
Part of the judge's ruling was the potential of Bolsonaro's move to diplomatic missions near the dwelling, considering that the probes revealed a record of planning to ask for protection through a diplomatic representation", a statement said.
The legal document emphasizes that the United States embassy in the federal district, the capital city, is situated around approximately 13 kilometers from his dwelling.
Worldwide Consequences
Bolsonaro's legal woes have provoked anger from fellow populist conservative American leader President Trump, prompting him to enact a 50% tariff on Brazilian product imports.
He is being kept in a national police facility in the capital and will have a imprisonment assessment on Sunday.
Latest Court Petitions
It was only on last Friday that the former president's lawyers asked the Top Court to allow him to serve his whole jail sentence under domestic detention, with digital surveillance.
They also asked that he be permitted to depart his residence for medical treatment, saying he required regular treatment for respiratory ailments and other health problems.
Details of Guilty Verdict
The former president was found guilty of heading a scheme aimed at maintaining his control after he was defeated in the 2022 election to his political opponent, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.
High Court judges said that he was aware of a plot which involved plans to assassinate his opponent and his VP candidate, his vice-presidential candidate, and to imprison and murder the presiding judge - the top judicial official who has been overseeing Bolsonaro's trial.
The scheme was prevented because it failed to get the support of the military leaders. The current president was took office without problem on the first day of 2023.
But a seven days after, on 8 January, many his backers stormed and vandalised official structures in the federal district, the capital city.
The police stepped in and around 1,500 people were taken into custody.
The magistrates found that the demonstrators had been provoked by Bolsonaro whose plan, they said, was for the Brazilian military to step in, reestablish control and return him to office.
At the time, the legal team called the over 27-year sentence "absurdly excessive.
He was also prohibited from campaigning for office until twenty-sixty - eight years after the completion of his term.
The former president called the court case a political persecution and said it was aimed at blocking him running in the 2026 presidential election.
