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Bolsonaro has been taken into custody after authorities determined he posed a definite escape threat while under house arrest.

The ex-president was found guilty of orchestrating a government overthrow in last fall and sentenced more than over two decades in prison, but he remained under house arrest pending legal challenges.

High Court Judge Justice Moraes said the decision to arrest the elderly politician was a safety action after "new facts" were revealed.

This included seeking to disable his ankle monitor and a call for a supporters' gathering that could "allow for a potential flight.

Court Filing Details Flight Fears

In a filing authorising the detention, the judge said intelligence from the facility tracking the former president's confinement suggested the one-time head of state's "intention to break the surveillance device to secure accomplishment in his getaway".

This, it said, would be assisted by the chaos caused by the gathering called by his son.

His child, his son Flávio, who serves as a legislator, called for a meeting of his followers near Bolsonaro's home to take place on the weekend.

His son wrote on online platforms on the previous day: Do you plan to struggle for your homeland, or see it all from your smartphone there on your sofa? I call on you to struggle with us."

He said the gathering would be so followers could offer prayers for his health and for the reestablishment of democratic governance in our land."

Embassy Asylum Concerns

Part of Justice Moraes's ruling was the potential of Bolsonaro's move to diplomatic missions near the residence, considering that the investigations revealed a background of organizing to ask for protection through a consular facility", a statement said.

The judicial paperwork emphasizes that the US embassy in the national capital, the capital city, is positioned around 13km from Bolsonaro's home.

Worldwide Consequences

His judicial problems have drawn the ire of fellow populist conservative US President Trump, prompting him to implement a fifty percent tax on Brazilian product imports.

He is being kept in a national police facility in Brasilia and will undergo a custody hearing on Sunday.

Recent Judicial Appeals

It was only on Friday that the his legal team asked the High Court to permit him to fulfill his full incarceration period under house arrest, with tracking devices.

They also asked that the former president be authorized to exit his dwelling for medical care, saying he needed ongoing care for lung conditions and other illnesses.

Background on Conviction

Bolsonaro was found guilty of heading a scheme aimed at maintaining his control after he failed to win the 2022 election to his left-wing rival, Lula.

High Court judges said that he had knowledge of a plan which included plans to murder the current president and his VP candidate, 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 prevented because it couldn't obtain the endorsement of the armed forces officials. The current president was took office without issue on January 1st, 2023.

But a week later, on 8 January, numerous Bolsonaro supporters invaded and destroyed government buildings in the capital, the capital city.

The police took action and around fifteen hundred individuals were detained.

The justices found that the demonstrators had been encouraged by Bolsonaro whose scheme, they said, was for the country's army to step in, reestablish control and bring him back to power.

At the time, the legal team called the 27 years and three months sentence unreasonably severe".

He was also banned from running for public office until the year 2060 - eight years later after the completion of his term.

The former president called the trial a "witch hunt and said it was intended to stop him running in the 2026 national vote.