Bolsonaro detained after being deemed a risk of fleeing
The former Brazilian leader has been detained after authorities found he posed a definite escape threat while under home confinement.
The one-time leader was found guilty of orchestrating a military coup in last fall and given more than a 27-year term in jail, but he was staying under home detention pending legal challenges.
Top Judicial Official the presiding justice said the action to imprison the elderly politician was a precautionary step after fresh information came to light.
This involved attempting to break his tracking device and a invitation to a demonstration that could facilitate a potential flight.
Judicial Records Show Flight Fears
In a document approving the custody, Justice Moraes said intelligence from the unit overseeing the former president's confinement suggested the one-time head of state's plan to remove the tracking monitor to ensure success in his getaway".
This, it said, would be assisted by the confusion caused by the demonstration called by his child.
His son, his son Flávio, who serves as a senator, called for a gathering of his supporters near the former president's residence to take place on Saturday night.
Flávio Bolsonaro wrote on online platforms on Friday: Do you plan to struggle for your country, or see it all from your phone there on your sofa? I urge you to fight with us."
He said the demonstration would be so followers could "pray for his health and for the reestablishment of democratic governance in our nation."
Foreign Shelter Risks
Part of Justice Moraes's determination was the possibility of his move to embassies near the home, considering that the inquiries revealed a background of planning to ask for protection through a embassy office", a statement said.
The judicial paperwork highlights that the American diplomatic mission in the national capital, Brasilia, is located around approximately 13 kilometers from the former president's residence.
Worldwide Consequences
Bolsonaro's legal woes have drawn the ire of fellow conservative nationalist American leader Donald Trump, leading him to enact a half-rate duty on imports of Brazilian goods.
Bolsonaro is being kept in a Federal Police station in Brazil's capital city and will experience a imprisonment assessment on Sunday.
Recent Judicial Appeals
It was only on the previous day that the his legal team asked the High Court to allow him to serve his whole jail sentence under home confinement, with digital surveillance.
They also requested that he be allowed to exit his dwelling for healthcare, saying he needed frequent medical attention for pulmonary infections and other illnesses.
Background on Conviction
The former president was convicted of orchestrating a scheme aimed at keeping him in power after he failed to win the 2022 election to his political opponent, President Lula.
Top judicial officials said that he was aware of a plan which included plans to kill his opponent and his running partner, his vice-presidential candidate, and to arrest and execute Alexandre de Moraes - the High Court judge who has been presiding over Bolsonaro's trial.
The scheme was stopped because it failed to get the endorsement of the military leaders. His successor was sworn in without issue on the first day of 2023.
But a following week, on the eighth of January, many Bolsonaro supporters invaded and destroyed public facilities in the capital, Brazil's capital.
The law enforcement took action and around 1,500 people were arrested.
The judges found that the protesters had been encouraged by him whose strategy, they said, was for the national armed forces to intervene, restore order and bring him back to power.
At the time, his attorneys called the over 27-year sentence "absurdly excessive.
He was also banned from campaigning for office until twenty-sixty - eight years after the conclusion of his imprisonment.
The former president called the court case a targeted investigation" and said it was aimed at blocking him participating in the 2026 presidential election.