Jair Bolsonaro has been arrested after authorities determined he posed a definite escape threat while under domestic detention.
The former head of state was found guilty of orchestrating a military coup in the ninth month and given more than a 27-year term in prison, but he remained under confinement pending court reviews.
High Court Judge Justice Moraes said the decision to arrest the elderly politician was a safety action after fresh information emerged.
This involved seeking to disable his tracking device and a invitation to a supporters' gathering that could "allow for a possible escape.
Legal Document Reveals Escape Concerns
In a filing authorising the detention, Justice Moraes said intelligence from the facility tracking Bolsonaro's house arrest suggested the ex-president's "intention to break the surveillance device to secure accomplishment in his getaway".
This, it said, would be assisted by the disorder caused by the protest called by his son.
His offspring, Flávio, who serves as a congressional representative, called for a assembly of his followers near his father's house to take place on Saturday night.
Flávio Bolsonaro wrote on social media on the previous day: "Are you going to fight for your nation, or watch it all from your smartphone there on your sofa? I call on you to fight with us."
He said the gathering would be so backers could offer prayers for his physical condition and for the restoration of democratic rule in our country."
Embassy Asylum Concerns
Part of Justice Moraes's decision was the possibility of Bolsonaro's "relocation to foreign missions near the home, considering that the investigations revealed a record of planning to ask for protection through a diplomatic representation", a statement said.
The legal document highlights that the American diplomatic mission in the national capital, the capital city, is positioned around 8 miles from the former president's residence.
International Reactions
The former president's legal troubles have provoked anger from fellow right-wing populist American leader Trump, causing him to enact a half-rate duty on Brazilian product imports.
The former president is being held in a national police facility in Brazil's capital city and will undergo a detention review on Sunday.
Recent Judicial Appeals
It was only on Friday that the his legal team asked the Top Court to allow him to complete his entire prison term under domestic detention, with tracking devices.
They also asked that Bolsonaro be permitted to depart his residence for medical care, saying he required ongoing care for respiratory ailments and other health problems.
Context of Sentencing
He was convicted of leading a conspiracy aimed at maintaining his control after he lost the presidential race to his ideological adversary, Lula.
High Court judges said that he had knowledge of a scheme which included plans to kill his opponent and his vice-presidential running mate, his vice-presidential candidate, and to imprison and murder the presiding judge - the High Court judge who has been managing the former president's case.
The conspiracy was thwarted because it didn't receive the endorsement of the army and air force commanders. Lula was took office without problem on 1 January 2023.
But a week later, on 8 January, thousands of his followers stormed and vandalised public facilities in the capital, the capital city.
The law enforcement intervened and around 1,500 people were detained.
The magistrates found that the rioters had been provoked by the former president whose plan, they said, was for the national armed forces to take action, restore order and return him to office.
At the time, his attorneys called the 27 years and three months sentence "absurdly excessive.
He was also barred from seeking elected position 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 aimed at blocking him running in the 2026 national vote.
