Jair Bolsonaro has been taken into custody after authorities found he posed a definite escape threat while under house arrest.
The one-time leader was found guilty of planning a government overthrow in last fall and handed more than a 27-year term in prison, but he remained under home detention pending appeals.
Top Judicial Official the presiding justice said the decision to arrest the septuagenarian politician was a preventative measure after "new facts" came to light.
This involved seeking to disable his electronic bracelet and a summons to a public vigil that could "allow for a potential flight.
Judicial Records Show Escape Concerns
In a filing authorising the custody, the magistrate said intelligence from the unit overseeing the former president's confinement suggested the one-time head of state's aim to disable the surveillance device to ensure success in his flight.
This, it said, would be assisted by the disorder caused by the protest called by his child.
His offspring, Flávio, who works as a legislator, called for a meeting of his backers near the former president's residence to take place on the weekend.
Flávio Bolsonaro wrote on online platforms on Friday: Do you plan to struggle for your country, or watch it all from your smartphone there on your couch? I call on you to fight with us."
He said the gathering would be so followers could "pray for his health and for the return of democracy in our land."
Diplomatic Refuge Fears
Part of the judge's decision was the possibility of Bolsonaro's move to foreign missions near the home, considering that the investigations revealed a background of organizing to seek refuge through a diplomatic representation", a announcement said.
The judicial paperwork emphasizes that the United States embassy in the federal district, Brazil's capital, is located around 8 miles from the former president's residence.
Worldwide Consequences
His judicial problems have provoked anger from fellow right-wing populist American leader Donald Trump, prompting him to enact a 50% tariff on imports of Brazilian goods.
Bolsonaro is being held in a federal law enforcement building in the capital and will undergo a detention review on Sunday.
Recent Judicial Appeals
It was only on the previous day that the former president's lawyers asked the Supreme Court to authorize him to serve his whole jail sentence under house arrest, with digital surveillance.
They also asked that he be allowed to exit his dwelling for healthcare, saying he needed regular treatment for pulmonary infections and other health problems.
Details of Guilty Verdict
The former president was determined responsible of orchestrating a scheme aimed at maintaining his control after he lost the 2022 election to his political opponent, President Lula.
Supreme Court justices said that he had knowledge of a plot which encompassed plans to assassinate the current president and his running partner, Alckmin, and to arrest and execute the presiding judge - the Supreme Court justice who has been overseeing the former president's case.
The conspiracy was stopped because it couldn't obtain the endorsement of the army and air force commanders. His successor was took office without problem on the first day of 2023.
But a seven days after, on 8 January, numerous Bolsonaro supporters invaded and destroyed public facilities in the national capital, the capital city.
The law enforcement stepped in and around fifteen hundred individuals were arrested.
The justices found that the protesters had been provoked by the former president whose scheme, they said, was for the national armed forces to take action, restore order and reinstate his authority.
At the period, the legal team called the 27 years and three months sentence extremely harsh.
He was also prohibited from campaigning for office until twenty-sixty - eight years later after the end of his sentence.
The ex-leader called the trial a political persecution and said it was aimed at blocking him competing in the next presidential race.
