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Jair Bolsonaro has been taken into custody after authorities found he posed a definite escape threat while under domestic detention.

The one-time leader was found guilty of planning a military coup in last fall and given more than 27 years in prison, but he was staying under home detention pending court reviews.

Top Judicial Official Alexandre de Moraes said the decision to arrest the elderly politician was a preventative measure after "new facts" emerged.

This encompassed trying to remove his tracking device and a invitation to a supporters' gathering that could facilitate a chance to flee".

Legal Document Reveals Flight Fears

In a filing authorising the arrest, the magistrate said data from the centre monitoring his home detention suggested the former leader's plan to remove the surveillance device to secure accomplishment in his escape.

This, it said, would be made easier by the confusion caused by the protest called by his offspring.

His offspring, Flávio Bolsonaro, who holds office as a senator, called for a gathering of his supporters near the former president's residence to take place on Saturday evening.

The senator wrote on digital networks on Friday: "Are you going to fight for your country, or watch it all from your mobile device there on your couch? I invite you to struggle with us."

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

Diplomatic Refuge Fears

Part of the judge's determination was the possibility of Bolsonaro's "relocation to diplomatic missions near the residence, considering that the investigations revealed a background of organizing to ask for protection through a consular facility", a announcement said.

The legal document emphasizes that the United States embassy in the federal district, Brasilia, is located around 13km from Bolsonaro's home.

Worldwide Consequences

Bolsonaro's legal woes have drawn the ire of fellow conservative nationalist United States President Donald Trump, leading him to implement a fifty percent tax on Brazilian product imports.

Bolsonaro is being kept in a national police facility in Brazil's capital city and will undergo a imprisonment assessment on the next day.

Recent Legal Requests

It was only on the previous day that the former president's lawyers asked the High Court to permit him to serve his whole jail sentence under home confinement, with digital surveillance.

They also petitioned that the former president be allowed to leave his home for healthcare, saying he required ongoing care for lung conditions and other illnesses.

Details of Guilty Verdict

He was found guilty of leading a conspiracy aimed at retaining his authority after he lost the 2022 election to his political opponent, Lula.

Top judicial officials said that he was aware of a plan which involved plans to murder his opponent and his VP candidate, Alckmin, and to detain and kill Justice Moraes - the Supreme Court justice who has been presiding over his judicial proceedings.

The scheme was thwarted because it failed to get the endorsement of the armed forces officials. His successor was inaugurated without incident on 1 January 2023.

But a following week, on 8 January, many Bolsonaro supporters attacked and damaged public facilities in the federal district, Brasília.

The law enforcement intervened and around approximately 1,500 persons were arrested.

The judges found that the rioters had been encouraged by Bolsonaro whose strategy, they said, was for the country's army to take action, restore order and bring him back to power.

At the period, Bolsonaro's lawyers called the decades-long sentence unreasonably severe".

He was also banned from campaigning for office until the year 2060 - eight years later after the end of his sentence.

The ex-leader called the legal proceedings a "witch hunt and said it was intended to stop him participating in the 2026 presidential election.