The former Brazilian leader has been taken into custody after authorities determined he posed a definite escape threat while under house arrest.
The one-time leader was convicted of orchestrating a government overthrow in the ninth month and handed more than over two decades in incarceration, but he continued under home detention pending appeals.
Brazilian Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes said the move to detain the septuagenarian politician was a safety action after recent developments were revealed.
This included trying to remove his electronic bracelet and a call for a demonstration that could facilitate a potential flight.
Legal Document Reveals Escape Concerns
In a document approving the arrest, Justice Moraes said intelligence from the unit overseeing his home detention suggested the former leader's "intention to break the tracking monitor to guarantee victory in his flight.
This, it said, would be assisted by the confusion caused by the demonstration called by his child.
His son, his son Flávio, who works as a congressional representative, called for a meeting of his backers near the former president's residence to take place on Saturday night.
His son wrote on online platforms on Friday: Will you battle for your homeland, or observe everything from your mobile device there on your settee? I call on you to fight with us."
He said the gathering would be so backers could seek divine intervention for his well-being and for the reestablishment of democratic governance in our land."
Foreign Shelter Risks
Part of Justice Moraes's determination was the possibility of his "relocation to diplomatic missions near the home, considering that the probes revealed a history of organizing to seek refuge through a consular facility", a statement said.
The legal document emphasizes that the American diplomatic mission in the federal district, the capital city, is situated around approximately 13 kilometers from the former president's residence.
Global Responses
His judicial problems have provoked anger from fellow populist conservative United States President Trump, leading him to impose a fifty percent tax on goods coming from Brazil.
Bolsonaro is being held in a Federal Police station in Brazil's capital city and will experience a custody hearing on Sunday.
Latest Court Petitions
It was only on Friday that the former president's lawyers asked the Top Court to authorize him to complete his entire prison term under house arrest, with digital surveillance.
They also asked that Bolsonaro be authorized to exit his dwelling for medical care, saying he required ongoing care for respiratory ailments and other ailments.
Context of Sentencing
The former president was determined responsible of heading a plot aimed at keeping him in power after he was defeated in the 2022 election to his left-wing rival, President Lula.
Supreme Court justices said that he knew of a scheme which encompassed plans to assassinate his opponent and his running partner, Geraldo Alckmin, and to arrest and execute Alexandre de Moraes - the High Court judge who has been managing Bolsonaro's trial.
The conspiracy was prevented because it failed to get the support of the military leaders. His successor was sworn in without issue on 1 January 2023.
But a week later, on the eighth of January, numerous Bolsonaro supporters stormed and vandalised government buildings in the capital, the capital city.
The police stepped in and around 1,500 people were arrested.
The judges found that the demonstrators had been incited by Bolsonaro whose strategy, they said, was for the country's army to step in, restore order and return him to office.
At the moment, the legal team called the 27 years and three months sentence unreasonably severe".
He was also banned from campaigning for office until the year 2060 - eight years after the completion of his term.
The ex-leader called the legal proceedings a "witch hunt and said it was designed to prevent him participating in the 2026 national vote.
