Jair Bolsonaro has been arrested after authorities found he posed a definite escape threat while under house arrest.
The one-time leader was sentenced of orchestrating a government overthrow in September and given more than a 27-year term in incarceration, but he remained under house arrest pending appeals.
Top Judicial Official the presiding justice said the action to imprison the elderly politician was a preventative measure after recent developments came to light.
This included seeking to disable his tracking device and a summons to a demonstration that could facilitate a possible escape.
Legal Document Reveals Flight Fears
In a filing authorising the arrest, Justice Moraes said intelligence from the facility tracking the former president's confinement suggested the ex-president's aim to disable the electronic ankle bracelet to guarantee victory in his escape.
This, it said, would be made easier by the chaos caused by the gathering called by his son.
His son, Flávio, who works as a legislator, called for a meeting of his supporters near Bolsonaro's home to take place on Saturday evening.
Flávio Bolsonaro wrote on online platforms on Friday: "Are you going to fight for your nation, or watch it all from your mobile device there on your sofa? I invite you to fight with us."
He said the demonstration would be so supporters could "pray for his physical condition and for the reestablishment of democratic governance in our nation."
Diplomatic Refuge Fears
Part of the magistrate's determination was the potential of his move to foreign missions near the dwelling, considering that the inquiries revealed a record of planning to ask for protection through a diplomatic representation", a announcement said.
The judicial paperwork underscores that the US embassy in the national capital, the capital city, is located around 13km from Bolsonaro's home.
Global Responses
His judicial problems have provoked anger from fellow conservative nationalist United States President Donald Trump, prompting him to impose a fifty percent tax on Brazilian product imports.
He is being detained in a national police facility in Brazil's capital city and will undergo a imprisonment assessment on Sunday.
Recent Judicial Appeals
It was only on the previous day that the ex-leader's attorneys asked the High Court to authorize him to serve his whole jail sentence under domestic detention, with tracking devices.
They also asked that Bolsonaro be authorized to leave his home for medical treatment, saying he required frequent medical attention for lung conditions and other ailments.
Background on Conviction
The former president was determined responsible of leading a conspiracy aimed at keeping him in power after he lost the 2022 election to his political opponent, Lula.
Supreme Court justices said that he had knowledge of a plot which encompassed plans to murder the current president and his VP candidate, his vice-presidential candidate, and to arrest and execute the presiding judge - the top judicial official who has been overseeing the former president's case.
The plot was stopped because it failed to get the backing of the armed forces officials. Lula was took office without problem on the first day of 2023.
But a following week, on the eighth of January, numerous his followers stormed and vandalised government buildings in the national capital, Brasília.
The law enforcement intervened and around approximately 1,500 persons were detained.
The justices found that the rioters had been provoked by Bolsonaro whose scheme, they said, was for the national armed forces to step in, reestablish control and return him to office.
At the moment, Bolsonaro's lawyers called the 27 years and three months sentence unreasonably severe".
He was also barred from running for public office until the year 2060 - eight years after the end of his sentence.
The one-time head of state called the court case a targeted investigation" and said it was intended to stop him participating in the next presidential race.
