Jair Bolsonaro has been taken into custody after authorities determined he posed a definite escape threat while under home confinement.
The one-time leader was found guilty of plotting a government overthrow in September and given more than a 27-year term in prison, but he continued under home detention pending court reviews.
Top Judicial Official the presiding justice said the move to detain the 70-year-old politician was a preventative measure after fresh information were revealed.
This involved trying to remove his tracking device and a call for a demonstration that could facilitate a possible escape.
Court Filing Details Flight Fears
In a document approving the detention, the magistrate said intelligence from the centre monitoring the former president's confinement suggested the one-time head of state's "intention to break the electronic ankle bracelet to ensure success in his getaway".
This, it said, would be "facilitated by the disorder caused by the demonstration called by his son.
His offspring, his son Flávio, who works 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 last Friday: Will you battle for your country, or see it all from your smartphone there on your couch? I invite you to battle with us."
He said the vigil would be so supporters could offer prayers for his well-being and for the restoration of democratic rule in our nation."
Embassy Asylum Concerns
Part of the magistrate's decision was the potential of Bolsonaro's move to foreign missions near the residence, considering that the inquiries revealed a record of organizing to seek refuge through a consular facility", a statement said.
The court filing underscores that the United States embassy in the capital, the capital city, is positioned around 13km from his dwelling.
Global Responses
The former president's legal troubles have generated frustration from fellow populist conservative US President President Trump, causing him to implement a 50% tariff on imports of Brazilian goods.
He is being kept in a Federal Police station in Brazil's capital city and will have a imprisonment assessment on the following day.
Recent Legal Requests
It was only on Friday that the former president's lawyers asked the Top Court to allow him to complete his entire prison term under home confinement, with electronic monitoring.
They also asked that Bolsonaro be authorized to leave his home for medical care, saying he needed ongoing care for pulmonary infections and other ailments.
Background on Conviction
He was found guilty of leading a conspiracy aimed at keeping him in power after he was defeated in the 2022 election to his political opponent, President Lula.
High Court judges said that he was aware of a scheme which included plans to assassinate the current president and his running partner, Geraldo Alckmin, and to detain and kill the presiding judge - the High Court judge who has been managing his judicial proceedings.
The scheme was prevented because it failed to get the support of the military leaders. His successor was sworn in without issue on 1 January 2023.
But a seven days after, on 8 January, numerous Bolsonaro supporters invaded and destroyed public facilities in the federal district, the capital city.
The law enforcement intervened and around 1,500 people were arrested.
The judges found that the rioters had been provoked by the former president whose plan, they said, was for the country's army to take action, reestablish control and reinstate his authority.
At the period, the legal team called the decades-long sentence extremely harsh.
He was also prohibited from running for public office until twenty-sixty - eight years later after the conclusion of his imprisonment.
The former president called the legal proceedings a "witch hunt and said it was intended to stop him competing in the 2026 national vote.
