The former Brazilian president taken into custody after being deemed a flight risk
Bolsonaro has been arrested after authorities determined he posed a definite escape threat while under home confinement.
The ex-president was found guilty of orchestrating a military coup in the ninth month and sentenced more than a 27-year term in prison, but he remained under house arrest pending court reviews.
Brazilian Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes said the move to detain the septuagenarian politician was a precautionary step after "new facts" were revealed.
This included trying to remove his tracking device and a call for a public vigil that could enable a potential flight.
Legal Document Reveals Escape Risks
In a document approving the custody, the judge said information from the facility tracking his home detention suggested the ex-president's "intention to break the tracking monitor to guarantee victory in his getaway".
This, it said, would be "facilitated by the confusion caused by the demonstration called by his offspring.
His child, his son Flávio, who works as a senator, called for a gathering of his supporters near the former president's residence to take place on Saturday night.
The senator wrote on online platforms on last Friday: "Are you going to fight for your country, or see it all from your mobile device there on your couch? I invite you to battle with us."
He said the demonstration would be so backers could seek divine intervention for his physical condition and for the restoration of democratic rule in our land."
Embassy Asylum Concerns
Part of the judge's determination was the chance of his "relocation to foreign missions near the residence, considering that the investigations revealed a background of arranging to seek refuge through a embassy office", a declaration said.
The court filing underscores that the US embassy in the national capital, Brasilia, is positioned around 8 miles from Bolsonaro's home.
Global Responses
The former president's legal troubles have generated frustration from fellow conservative nationalist US President Trump, causing him to implement a 50% tariff on Brazilian product imports.
The former president is being kept in a federal law enforcement building in Brasilia and will have a detention review on the following day.
Latest Court Petitions
It was only on the previous day that the his legal team asked the Top Court to permit him to fulfill his full incarceration period under home confinement, with digital surveillance.
They also asked that the former president be permitted to depart his residence for healthcare, saying he needed frequent medical attention for lung conditions and other illnesses.
Background on Conviction
The former president was found guilty of heading a scheme aimed at maintaining his control after he lost the presidential race to his left-wing rival, Lula.
High Court judges said that he had knowledge of a plot which included plans to assassinate Lula and his VP candidate, his vice-presidential candidate, and to detain and kill Alexandre de Moraes - the High Court judge who has been presiding over his judicial proceedings.
The scheme was stopped because it failed to get the endorsement of the armed forces officials. His successor was took office without problem on the first day of 2023.
But a week later, on 8 January, numerous Bolsonaro supporters stormed and vandalised public facilities in the capital, Brasília.
The security forces took action and around approximately 1,500 persons were arrested.
The justices found that the protesters had been provoked by Bolsonaro whose scheme, they said, was for the Brazilian military to step in, bring back stability and bring him back to power.
At the moment, the legal team called the over 27-year sentence "absurdly excessive.
He was also barred from running for public office until 2060 - eight years later after the end of his sentence.
The former president called the trial a targeted investigation" and said it was designed to prevent him running in the 2026 presidential election.
