Jair Bolsonaro detained after being deemed a flight risk
The former Brazilian leader has been taken into custody after authorities found he posed a definite escape threat while under domestic detention.
The one-time leader was convicted of planning a government overthrow in the ninth month and sentenced more than 27 years in jail, but he continued under home detention pending appeals.
Brazilian Supreme Court Justice the presiding justice said the decision to arrest the 70-year-old politician was a safety action after recent developments emerged.
This involved trying to remove his electronic bracelet and a summons to a demonstration that could enable a possible escape.
Court Filing Details Escape Concerns
In a filing authorising the detention, the judge said information from the facility tracking Bolsonaro's house arrest suggested the former leader's "intention to break the surveillance device to guarantee victory in his escape.
This, it said, would be made easier by the confusion caused by the protest called by his child.
His offspring, his son Flávio, who works as a legislator, called for a gathering of his followers near the former president's residence to take place on the weekend.
Flávio Bolsonaro wrote on online platforms on Friday: Will you battle for your nation, 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 followers could offer prayers for his physical condition and for the restoration of democratic rule in our land."
Foreign Shelter Risks
Part of the judge's ruling was the potential of the former president's "relocation to embassies near the dwelling, considering that the probes revealed a history of planning to ask for protection through a diplomatic representation", a statement said.
The court filing emphasizes that the United States embassy in the capital, Brazil's capital, is situated around 8 miles from Bolsonaro's home.
International Reactions
His judicial problems have provoked anger from fellow conservative nationalist US President Donald Trump, leading him to impose a 50% tariff on goods coming from Brazil.
Bolsonaro is being kept in a federal law enforcement building in Brasilia and will have a custody hearing on the next day.
Recent Legal Requests
It was only on last Friday that the former president's lawyers asked the High Court to authorize him to fulfill his full incarceration period under home confinement, with tracking devices.
They also asked that he be allowed to depart his residence for medical treatment, saying he required regular treatment for respiratory ailments and other illnesses.
Details of Guilty Verdict
The former president was convicted of leading a scheme aimed at keeping him in power after he was defeated in the national vote to his political opponent, Lula.
Supreme Court justices said that he knew of a scheme which encompassed plans to assassinate his opponent and his VP candidate, Alckmin, and to imprison and murder the presiding judge - the top judicial official who has been overseeing the former president's case.
The conspiracy was prevented because it failed to get the endorsement of the army and air force commanders. Lula was took office without incident on 1 January 2023.
But a seven days after, on the eighth of January, many his backers invaded and destroyed government buildings in the federal district, the capital city.
The police took action and around approximately 1,500 persons were detained.
The judges found that the protesters had been encouraged by the former president whose strategy, they said, was for the national armed forces to take action, restore order and bring him back to power.
At the period, his attorneys called the 27 years and three months sentence unreasonably severe".
He was also prohibited from seeking elected position until the year 2060 - eight years after the completion of his term.
The ex-leader called the legal proceedings a political persecution and said it was intended to stop him running in the 2026 presidential election.