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Bolsonaro has been taken into custody after authorities concluded he posed a serious risk of fleeing while under domestic detention.

The one-time leader was sentenced of planning a government overthrow in September and handed more than over two decades in incarceration, but he remained under confinement pending court reviews.

Brazilian Supreme Court Justice Justice Moraes said the decision to arrest the 70-year-old politician was a preventative measure after recent developments came to light.

This involved attempting to break his electronic bracelet and a invitation to a public vigil that could facilitate a potential flight.

Judicial Records Show Escape Risks

In a filing authorising the arrest, the magistrate said intelligence from the centre monitoring the former president's confinement suggested the one-time head of state's "intention to break the surveillance device to secure accomplishment in his getaway".

This, it said, would be assisted by the confusion caused by the demonstration called by his child.

His son, Flávio, who serves as a senator, called for a meeting of his backers near the former president's residence to take place on the weekend.

The senator wrote on social media on last Friday: Do you plan to struggle for your country, or watch it all from your mobile device there on your sofa? I call on you to battle with us."

He said the vigil would be so followers could seek divine intervention for his well-being and for the return of democracy in our land."

Diplomatic Refuge Fears

Part of the judge's determination was the potential of Bolsonaro's "relocation to foreign missions near the residence, considering that the probes revealed a history of organizing to ask for protection through a diplomatic representation", a declaration said.

The legal document highlights that the US embassy in the national capital, Brasilia, is located around approximately 13 kilometers from Bolsonaro's home.

Global Responses

His judicial problems have drawn the ire of fellow populist conservative United States President President Trump, prompting him to implement a half-rate duty on imports of Brazilian goods.

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

Latest Court Petitions

It was only on Friday that the former president's lawyers asked the Supreme Court to authorize him to fulfill his full incarceration period under house arrest, with electronic monitoring.

They also requested that Bolsonaro be permitted to leave his home for healthcare, saying he demanded ongoing care for pulmonary infections and other health problems.

Details of Guilty Verdict

He was convicted of heading a plot aimed at retaining his authority after he lost the national vote to his left-wing rival, President Lula.

Top judicial officials said that he knew of a scheme which encompassed plans to murder Lula and his vice-presidential running mate, Alckmin, and to detain and kill Justice Moraes - the Supreme Court justice who has been overseeing Bolsonaro's trial.

The plot was thwarted because it didn't receive the backing of the military leaders. The current president was took office without incident on 1 January 2023.

But a week later, on the eighth of January, thousands of Bolsonaro supporters attacked and damaged government buildings in the national capital, Brazil's capital.

The police intervened and around fifteen hundred individuals were detained.

The justices found that the protesters had been incited by the former president whose scheme, they said, was for the Brazilian military to intervene, restore order and return him to office.

At the period, the legal team called the 27 years and three months sentence "absurdly excessive.

He was also banned from seeking elected position until 2060 - eight years after the end of his sentence.

The ex-leader called the court case a "witch hunt and said it was aimed at blocking him competing in the 2026 presidential election.