Jair Bolsonaro has been taken into custody after authorities concluded he posed a definite escape threat while under house arrest.
The former head of state was convicted of planning a armed takeover in September and sentenced more than 27 years in prison, but he continued under house arrest pending legal challenges.
High Court Judge the presiding justice said the move to detain the 70-year-old politician was a safety action after fresh information emerged.
This included attempting to break his ankle monitor and a invitation to a demonstration that could "allow for a potential flight.
Legal Document Reveals Escape Concerns
In a paperwork permitting the arrest, Justice Moraes said data from the centre monitoring Bolsonaro's house arrest suggested the ex-president's "intention to break the tracking monitor to secure accomplishment in his getaway".
This, it said, would be assisted by the confusion caused by the protest called by his son.
His child, his son Flávio, who works as a legislator, called for a assembly of his backers near the former president's residence to take place on Saturday night.
Flávio Bolsonaro wrote on online platforms on last Friday: "Are you going to fight for your country, or see it all from your smartphone there on your sofa? I invite you to battle with us."
He said the gathering would be so supporters could offer prayers for his health and for the return of democracy in our nation."
Embassy Asylum Concerns
Part of the magistrate's determination was the possibility of the former president's transfer to embassies near the residence, considering that the probes revealed a record of arranging to request asylum through a embassy office", a statement said.
The judicial paperwork underscores that the United States embassy in the national capital, Brasilia, is located around 13km from his dwelling.
Global Responses
Bolsonaro's legal woes have generated frustration from fellow right-wing populist US President President Trump, causing him to implement a fifty percent tax on Brazilian product imports.
The former president is being detained in a Federal Police station in the capital and will undergo a detention review on the next day.
Recent Judicial Appeals
It was only on Friday that the former president's lawyers asked the Top Court to authorize him to serve his whole jail sentence under home confinement, with tracking devices.
They also requested that he be authorized to leave his home for medical treatment, saying he needed frequent medical attention for pulmonary infections and other illnesses.
Background on Conviction
The former president was determined responsible of heading a plot aimed at keeping him in power after he lost the 2022 election to his left-wing rival, Lula.
Top judicial officials said that he was aware of a plot which included plans to murder the current president and his running partner, his vice-presidential candidate, and to arrest and execute Alexandre de Moraes - the Supreme Court justice who has been presiding over Bolsonaro's trial.
The conspiracy was stopped because it didn't receive the support of the armed forces officials. Lula was sworn in without problem on the first day of 2023.
But a week later, on the eighth of January, thousands of Bolsonaro supporters attacked and damaged government buildings in the capital, Brasília.
The security forces intervened and around 1,500 people were arrested.
The judges found that the protesters had been provoked by the former president whose scheme, they said, was for the country's army to intervene, restore order and bring him back to power.
At the time, the legal team called the 27 years and three months sentence "absurdly excessive.
He was also prohibited from seeking elected position until the year 2060 - eight years after the end of his sentence.
The former president called the court case a political persecution and said it was intended to stop him participating in the 2026 presidential election.
