Jair Bolsonaro has been arrested after authorities determined he posed a concrete flight risk while under domestic detention.
The ex-president was convicted of plotting a armed takeover in last fall and handed more than 27 years in prison, but he continued under home detention pending legal challenges.
Brazilian Supreme Court Justice Justice Moraes said the decision to arrest the 70-year-old politician was a safety action after "new facts" were revealed.
This encompassed seeking to disable his ankle monitor and a summons to a demonstration that could "allow for a potential flight.
Legal Document Reveals Escape Risks
In a paperwork permitting the custody, the magistrate said data from the facility tracking his home detention suggested the ex-president's aim to disable the surveillance device to ensure success in his escape.
This, it said, would be made easier by the confusion caused by the demonstration called by his offspring.
His child, Flávio, who holds office as a legislator, called for a assembly of his supporters near his father's house to take place on Saturday night.
His son wrote on online platforms on the previous day: Will you battle for your homeland, or watch it all from your mobile device there on your couch? I urge you to battle with us."
He said the gathering would be so followers could offer prayers for his health and for the return of democracy in our nation."
Foreign Shelter Risks
Part of Justice Moraes's determination was the chance of Bolsonaro's transfer to foreign missions near the home, considering that the probes revealed a record of organizing to ask for protection through a diplomatic representation", a declaration said.
The legal document highlights that the US embassy in the federal district, Brazil's capital, is positioned around 13km from the former president's residence.
Global Responses
Bolsonaro's legal woes have generated frustration from fellow conservative nationalist United States President President Trump, causing him to implement a fifty percent tax on imports of Brazilian goods.
The former president is being kept in a national police facility in the capital and will undergo a detention review on Sunday.
Recent Judicial Appeals
It was only on the previous day that the ex-leader's attorneys asked the Supreme Court to allow him to fulfill his full incarceration period under domestic detention, with digital surveillance.
They also petitioned that Bolsonaro be authorized to exit his dwelling for healthcare, saying he needed regular treatment for lung conditions and other health problems.
Context of Sentencing
Bolsonaro was found guilty of leading a plot aimed at maintaining his control after he failed to win the national vote to his political opponent, President Lula.
High Court judges said that he had knowledge of a scheme which included plans to kill Lula and his VP candidate, his vice-presidential candidate, and to arrest and execute Justice Moraes - the top judicial official who has been presiding over Bolsonaro's trial.
The conspiracy was thwarted because it couldn't obtain the backing of the army and air force commanders. Lula was inaugurated without issue on the first day of 2023.
But a seven days after, on 8 January, numerous his followers attacked and damaged public facilities in the national capital, the capital city.
The police stepped in and around 1,500 people were arrested.
The magistrates found that the protesters had been incited by Bolsonaro whose scheme, they said, was for the Brazilian military to intervene, bring back stability and reinstate his authority.
At the period, his attorneys called the over 27-year sentence unreasonably severe".
He was also banned from campaigning for office until the year 2060 - eight years after the conclusion of his imprisonment.
The ex-leader called the court case a political persecution and said it was designed to prevent him participating in the 2026 presidential election.
