The former Brazilian president arrested after being declared a risk of fleeing
Bolsonaro has been taken into custody after authorities determined he posed a serious risk of fleeing while under house arrest.
The former head of state was sentenced of planning a military coup in September and given more than 27 years in jail, but he continued under house arrest pending court reviews.
Top Judicial Official Justice Moraes said the decision to arrest the elderly politician was a precautionary step after recent developments were revealed.
This included trying to remove his electronic bracelet and a summons to a supporters' gathering that could enable a potential flight.
Court Filing Details Flight Fears
In a document approving the detention, the magistrate said data from the unit overseeing his home detention suggested the ex-president's "intention to break the tracking monitor to ensure success in his flight.
This, it said, would be assisted by the chaos caused by the demonstration called by his son.
His child, Flávio Bolsonaro, who works as a senator, called for a assembly of his followers near the former president's residence to take place on Saturday night.
The senator wrote on digital networks on last Friday: "Are you going to fight for your country, or see it all from your mobile device there on your settee? I invite you to fight with us."
He said the vigil would be so backers could "pray for his physical condition and for the reestablishment of democratic governance in our land."
Diplomatic Refuge Fears
Part of Justice Moraes's determination was the possibility of the former president's "relocation to foreign missions near the home, considering that the probes revealed a background of planning to ask for protection through a consular facility", a announcement said.
The judicial paperwork emphasizes that the United States embassy in the federal district, the capital city, is situated around 8 miles from his dwelling.
Global Responses
Bolsonaro's legal woes have generated frustration from fellow conservative nationalist US President President Trump, causing him to enact a 50% tariff on goods coming from Brazil.
He is being detained in a national police facility in the capital and will experience a custody hearing on the next day.
Recent Judicial Appeals
It was only on the previous day that the his legal team asked the Top Court to allow him to complete his entire prison term under home confinement, with tracking devices.
They also requested that he be permitted to exit his dwelling for medical treatment, saying he demanded ongoing care for respiratory ailments and other health problems.
Background on Conviction
Bolsonaro was determined responsible of heading a plot aimed at keeping him in power after he lost the presidential race to his ideological adversary, Lula.
Supreme Court justices said that he knew of a scheme which involved plans to kill Lula and his vice-presidential running mate, his vice-presidential candidate, and to arrest and execute Justice Moraes - the top judicial official who has been presiding over his judicial proceedings.
The scheme was thwarted because it failed to get the support of the armed forces officials. The current president was inaugurated without incident on 1 January 2023.
But a seven days after, on January 8th, numerous Bolsonaro supporters attacked and damaged official structures in the capital, Brazil's capital.
The police intervened and around fifteen hundred individuals were arrested.
The justices found that the rioters had been incited by Bolsonaro whose scheme, they said, was for the national armed forces to step in, reestablish control and reinstate his authority.
At the moment, the legal team called the decades-long sentence unreasonably severe".
He was also banned from seeking elected position until twenty-sixty - eight years later after the conclusion of his imprisonment.
The one-time head of state called the court case a "witch hunt and said it was designed to prevent him competing in the 2026 national vote.
