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Bolsonaro has been arrested after authorities concluded he posed a serious risk of fleeing while under domestic detention.

The former head of state was found guilty of planning a armed takeover in the ninth month and given more than a 27-year term in jail, but he continued under confinement pending appeals.

Top Judicial Official Alexandre de Moraes said the action to imprison the 70-year-old politician was a precautionary step after "new facts" came to light.

This included seeking to disable his electronic bracelet and a invitation to a public vigil that could "allow for a possible escape.

Court Filing Details Flight Fears

In a document approving the custody, the magistrate said information from the facility tracking the former president's confinement suggested the one-time head of state's "intention to break the surveillance device to secure accomplishment in his escape.

This, it said, would be made easier by the disorder caused by the demonstration called by his offspring.

His child, Flávio Bolsonaro, who serves as a congressional representative, called for a assembly of his supporters near the former president's residence to take place on Saturday night.

His son wrote on online platforms on last Friday: Do you plan to struggle for your homeland, or observe everything from your phone there on your sofa? I invite you to struggle with us."

He said the demonstration would be so supporters could offer prayers for his health and for the reestablishment of democratic governance in our nation."

Foreign Shelter Risks

Part of Justice Moraes's ruling was the possibility of the former president's "relocation to diplomatic missions near the residence, considering that the investigations revealed a history of arranging to ask for protection through a diplomatic representation", a announcement said.

The judicial paperwork highlights that the United States embassy in the capital, the capital city, is located around 13km from Bolsonaro's home.

International Reactions

Bolsonaro's legal woes have drawn the ire of fellow populist conservative American leader Trump, causing him to implement a half-rate duty on Brazilian product imports.

Bolsonaro is being kept in a federal law enforcement building in Brasilia and will undergo a custody hearing on the following day.

Recent Legal Requests

It was only on Friday that the his legal team asked the Supreme Court to allow him to serve his whole jail sentence under house arrest, with tracking devices.

They also petitioned that Bolsonaro be allowed to depart his residence for medical care, saying he needed frequent medical attention for lung conditions and other illnesses.

Background on Conviction

He was determined responsible of orchestrating a plot aimed at maintaining his control after he was defeated in the 2022 election to his left-wing rival, Lula.

Top judicial officials said that he knew of a plan which encompassed plans to assassinate his opponent and his VP candidate, Geraldo Alckmin, and to detain and kill the presiding judge - the top judicial official who has been managing the former president's case.

The plot was thwarted because it couldn't obtain the backing of the armed forces officials. The current president was sworn in without issue on the first day of 2023.

But a following week, on January 8th, numerous Bolsonaro supporters stormed and vandalised government buildings in the federal district, Brasília.

The security forces stepped in and around approximately 1,500 persons were detained.

The magistrates found that the protesters had been provoked by the former president whose scheme, they said, was for the national armed forces to take action, reestablish control and bring him back to power.

At the period, his attorneys called the 27 years and three months sentence extremely harsh.

He was also barred from seeking elected position until the year 2060 - a decade minus two years after the completion of his term.

The former president called the court case a political persecution and said it was designed to prevent him competing in the 2026 presidential election.