Bolsonaro taken into custody after being considered a risk of fleeing
Bolsonaro has been detained after authorities determined he posed a serious risk of fleeing while under domestic detention.
The former head of state was convicted of planning a government overthrow in last fall and sentenced more than over two decades in jail, but he continued under home detention pending appeals.
High Court Judge Alexandre de Moraes said the move to detain the elderly politician was a safety action after "new facts" emerged.
This encompassed seeking to disable his ankle monitor and a summons to a demonstration that could facilitate a possible escape.
Court Filing Details Escape Risks
In a document approving the detention, the magistrate said information from the centre monitoring Bolsonaro's house arrest suggested the ex-president's plan to remove the electronic ankle bracelet to guarantee victory in his flight.
This, it said, would be assisted by the chaos caused by the demonstration called by his son.
His offspring, his son Flávio, who serves as a legislator, called for a assembly of his supporters near the former president's residence to take place on Saturday evening.
His son wrote on digital networks on the previous day: "Are you going to fight for your homeland, or see it all from your smartphone there on your sofa? I urge you to battle with us."
He said the vigil would be so supporters could offer prayers for his health and for the restoration of democratic rule in our country."
Diplomatic Refuge Fears
Part of the judge's ruling was the potential of the former president's "relocation to embassies near the home, considering that the investigations revealed a history of planning to request asylum through a consular facility", a statement said.
The judicial paperwork underscores that the US embassy in the capital, the capital city, is located around 13km from Bolsonaro's home.
International Reactions
His judicial problems have drawn the ire of fellow conservative nationalist American leader Donald Trump, prompting him to impose a fifty percent tax on goods coming from Brazil.
He is being detained in a Federal Police station in the capital and will experience a custody hearing on Sunday.
Latest Court Petitions
It was only on last Friday that the ex-leader's attorneys asked the High Court to allow him to complete his entire prison term under house arrest, with digital surveillance.
They also requested that Bolsonaro be authorized to leave his home for healthcare, saying he demanded ongoing care for lung conditions and other illnesses.
Context of Sentencing
The former president was convicted of orchestrating a conspiracy aimed at keeping him in power after he failed to win the 2022 election to his political opponent, Lula.
High Court judges said that he was aware of a plot which included plans to kill the current president and his vice-presidential running mate, his vice-presidential candidate, and to detain and kill Alexandre de Moraes - the Supreme Court justice who has been overseeing the former president's case.
The scheme was stopped because it failed to get the support of the military leaders. His successor was took office without incident on 1 January 2023.
But a week later, on the eighth of January, numerous his backers attacked and damaged public facilities in the national capital, Brazil's capital.
The security forces stepped in and around approximately 1,500 persons were detained.
The magistrates found that the rioters had been provoked by him whose scheme, they said, was for the Brazilian military to step in, reestablish control and reinstate his authority.
At the period, the legal team called the over 27-year sentence "absurdly excessive.
He was also barred from campaigning for office until 2060 - a decade minus two years after the completion of his term.
The one-time head of state called the legal proceedings a targeted investigation" and said it was intended to stop him running in the next presidential race.