Jair Bolsonaro has been arrested after authorities determined he posed a definite escape threat while under domestic detention.
The ex-president was sentenced of planning a armed takeover in the ninth month and sentenced more than 27 years in jail, but he continued under home detention pending legal challenges.
High Court Judge Justice Moraes said the move to detain the 70-year-old politician was a precautionary step after fresh information came to light.
This included seeking to disable his tracking device and a call for a demonstration that could "allow for a chance to flee".
Court Filing Details Escape Concerns
In a document approving the arrest, the magistrate said intelligence from the facility tracking Bolsonaro's house arrest suggested the one-time head of state's aim to disable the electronic ankle bracelet to guarantee victory in his getaway".
This, it said, would be "facilitated by the confusion caused by the demonstration called by his child.
His offspring, his son Flávio, who serves as a legislator, called for a meeting of his backers near the former president's residence to take place on Saturday night.
The senator wrote on online platforms on the previous day: Will you battle for your nation, or see it all from your mobile device there on your settee? I invite you to struggle with us."
He said the vigil would be so backers could offer prayers for his health and for the reestablishment of democratic governance in our country."
Embassy Asylum Concerns
Part of the judge's ruling was the chance of his "relocation to foreign missions near the residence, considering that the inquiries revealed a background of planning to ask for protection through a diplomatic representation", a announcement said.
The court filing emphasizes that the American diplomatic mission in the capital, the capital city, is located around 8 miles from the former president's residence.
Global Responses
Bolsonaro's legal woes have drawn the ire of fellow conservative nationalist United States President Donald Trump, prompting him to enact a fifty percent tax on goods coming from Brazil.
The former president is being kept in a federal law enforcement building in the capital and will undergo a imprisonment assessment on Sunday.
Recent Judicial Appeals
It was only on last Friday that the his legal team asked the Supreme Court to permit him to serve his whole jail sentence under domestic detention, with electronic monitoring.
They also petitioned that the former president be permitted to exit his dwelling for medical treatment, saying he needed frequent medical attention for lung conditions and other ailments.
Background on Conviction
The former president was convicted of heading a scheme aimed at retaining his authority after he lost the presidential race to his political opponent, Lula.
Top judicial officials said that he was aware of a plan which encompassed plans to murder Lula and his vice-presidential running mate, Alckmin, and to detain and kill Alexandre de Moraes - the Supreme Court justice who has been managing the former president's case.
The plot was thwarted because it failed to get the backing of the army and air force commanders. His successor was inaugurated without issue on January 1st, 2023.
But a seven days after, on the eighth of January, thousands of Bolsonaro supporters stormed and vandalised public facilities in the national capital, Brasília.
The law enforcement intervened and around fifteen hundred individuals were detained.
The judges found that the rioters had been encouraged by Bolsonaro whose strategy, they said, was for the country's army to step in, bring back stability and bring him back to power.
At the time, his attorneys called the over 27-year sentence extremely harsh.
He was also banned from running for public office until the year 2060 - a decade minus two years after the conclusion of his imprisonment.
The one-time head of state called the legal proceedings a "witch hunt and said it was aimed at blocking him competing in the 2026 national vote.
