Bolsonaro taken into custody after being declared a escape threat
Bolsonaro has been arrested after authorities determined he posed a concrete flight risk while under house arrest.
The former head of state was sentenced of orchestrating a military coup in September and handed more than over two decades in prison, but he was staying under home detention pending legal challenges.
Brazilian Supreme Court Justice Justice Moraes said the action to imprison the 70-year-old politician was a safety action after "new facts" came to light.
This included trying to remove his tracking device and a summons to a supporters' gathering that could "allow for a possible escape.
Judicial Records Show Flight Fears
In a paperwork permitting the arrest, Justice Moraes said intelligence from the facility tracking Bolsonaro's house arrest suggested the former leader's plan to remove the tracking monitor to ensure success in his flight.
This, it said, would be assisted by the chaos caused by the gathering called by his child.
His son, Flávio Bolsonaro, who holds office as a senator, called for a gathering of his supporters near Bolsonaro's home to take place on Saturday evening.
His son wrote on online platforms on last Friday: Will you battle for your country, or observe everything from your phone there on your couch? I call on you to fight with us."
He said the demonstration would be so followers could seek divine intervention for his well-being and for the reestablishment of democratic governance in our land."
Embassy Asylum Concerns
Part of the judge's ruling was the possibility of his move to diplomatic missions near the dwelling, considering that the probes revealed a record of planning to ask for protection through a consular facility", a declaration said.
The legal document underscores that the United States embassy in the national capital, the capital city, is located around approximately 13 kilometers from the former president's residence.
International Reactions
Bolsonaro's legal woes have generated frustration from fellow right-wing populist US President Trump, leading him to impose a fifty percent tax on goods coming from Brazil.
Bolsonaro is being kept in a national police facility in the capital and will experience a detention review on Sunday.
Latest Court Petitions
It was only on the previous day that the ex-leader's attorneys asked the Supreme Court to authorize him to serve his whole jail sentence under home confinement, with tracking devices.
They also petitioned that he be authorized to exit his dwelling for medical treatment, saying he required ongoing care for pulmonary infections and other health problems.
Details of Guilty Verdict
He was determined responsible of orchestrating a plot aimed at retaining his authority after he was defeated in the national vote to his left-wing rival, President Lula.
Supreme Court justices said that he knew of a plan which involved plans to murder the current president and his running partner, Alckmin, and to detain and kill Justice Moraes - the top judicial official who has been managing Bolsonaro's trial.
The plot was thwarted because it couldn't obtain the endorsement of the armed forces officials. Lula was inaugurated without issue on 1 January 2023.
But a week later, on January 8th, thousands of Bolsonaro supporters invaded and destroyed public facilities in the capital, Brazil's capital.
The law enforcement stepped in and around fifteen hundred individuals were taken into custody.
The justices found that the rioters had been incited by Bolsonaro whose strategy, they said, was for the country's army to take action, restore order and return him to office.
At the time, Bolsonaro's lawyers called the over 27-year sentence extremely harsh.
He was also banned from campaigning for office until the year 2060 - eight years after the completion of his term.
The former president called the court case a targeted investigation" and said it was designed to prevent him competing in the 2026 presidential election.