Bolsonaro taken into custody after being considered a flight risk
The former Brazilian leader has been detained after authorities determined he posed a serious risk of fleeing while under house arrest.
The one-time leader was sentenced of plotting a government overthrow in the ninth month and handed more than over two decades in incarceration, but he remained under house arrest pending appeals.
High Court Judge Justice Moraes said the action to imprison the septuagenarian politician was a preventative measure after fresh information emerged.
This encompassed trying to remove his tracking device and a invitation to a supporters' gathering that could "allow for a possible escape.
Legal Document Reveals Flight Fears
In a paperwork permitting the arrest, the judge said data from the unit overseeing his home detention suggested the former leader's plan to remove the surveillance device to guarantee victory in his getaway".
This, it said, would be made easier by the confusion caused by the protest called by his child.
His child, his son Flávio, who serves as a legislator, called for a meeting of his backers near Bolsonaro's home to take place on Saturday evening.
His son wrote on digital networks on Friday: Will you battle for your country, or see it all from your mobile device there on your settee? I call on you to battle with us."
He said the vigil would be so followers could seek divine intervention for his physical condition and for the restoration of democratic rule in our nation."
Foreign Shelter Risks
Part of the judge's ruling was the chance of the former president's move to foreign missions near the home, considering that the probes revealed a history of organizing to request asylum through a consular facility", a statement said.
The legal document highlights that the United States embassy in the capital, Brazil's capital, is located around 13km from the former president's residence.
Global Responses
The former president's legal troubles have drawn the ire of fellow right-wing populist United States President Donald Trump, leading him to enact a 50% tariff on imports of Brazilian goods.
Bolsonaro is being kept in a federal law enforcement building in Brasilia and will undergo a custody hearing on Sunday.
Recent Legal Requests
It was only on the previous day that the ex-leader's attorneys asked the Top Court to permit him to complete his entire prison term under domestic detention, with digital surveillance.
They also asked that the former president be authorized to exit his dwelling for healthcare, saying he required regular treatment for lung conditions and other health problems.
Background on Conviction
The former president was determined responsible of leading a plot aimed at keeping him in power after he lost the 2022 election to his left-wing rival, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.
Top judicial officials said that he knew of a scheme which encompassed plans to murder his opponent and his vice-presidential running mate, Geraldo Alckmin, and to imprison and murder the presiding judge - the High Court judge who has been presiding over his judicial proceedings.
The plot was thwarted because it couldn't obtain the backing of the military leaders. The current president was inaugurated without issue on the first day of 2023.
But a seven days after, on the eighth of January, thousands of his followers attacked and damaged public facilities in the federal district, Brazil's capital.
The police stepped in and around 1,500 people were arrested.
The justices found that the rioters had been provoked by Bolsonaro whose scheme, they said, was for the country's army to step in, bring back stability and reinstate his authority.
At the time, Bolsonaro's lawyers called the 27 years and three months sentence unreasonably severe".
He was also barred from running for public office until 2060 - a decade minus two years after the conclusion of his imprisonment.
The former president called the court case a targeted investigation" and said it was designed to prevent him participating in the 2026 national vote.
