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Bolsonaro has been detained after authorities concluded he posed a serious risk of fleeing while under home confinement.

The former head of state was sentenced of planning a government overthrow in September and given more than over two decades in incarceration, but he was staying under house arrest pending legal challenges.

High Court Judge the presiding justice said the decision to arrest the elderly politician was a preventative measure after recent developments were revealed.

This included trying to remove his ankle monitor and a call for a public vigil that could "allow for a possible escape.

Judicial Records Show Flight Fears

In a document approving the custody, the judge said intelligence from the unit overseeing the former president's confinement suggested the former leader's plan to remove the surveillance device to ensure success in his escape.

This, it said, would be "facilitated by the chaos caused by the demonstration called by his child.

His offspring, his son Flávio, who serves as a senator, called for a gathering of his supporters near his father's house to take place on Saturday evening.

The senator wrote on online platforms on last Friday: Will you battle for your nation, or see it all from your phone there on your sofa? I urge you to fight with us."

He said the vigil would be so backers could seek divine intervention for his well-being and for the reestablishment of democratic governance in our land."

Diplomatic Refuge Fears

Part of Justice Moraes's decision was the possibility of Bolsonaro's move to embassies near the home, considering that the inquiries revealed a record of planning to ask for protection through a consular facility", a announcement said.

The legal document underscores that the United States embassy in the capital, the capital city, is positioned around 8 miles from the former president's residence.

Worldwide Consequences

His judicial problems have generated frustration from fellow populist conservative US President Trump, leading him to implement a half-rate duty on imports of Brazilian goods.

The former president is being detained in a Federal Police station in the capital and will experience a imprisonment assessment on Sunday.

Recent Legal Requests

It was only on the previous day that the former president's lawyers asked the Top Court to allow him to complete his entire prison term under house arrest, with tracking devices.

They also petitioned that he be permitted to exit his dwelling for medical treatment, saying he demanded frequent medical attention for pulmonary infections and other health problems.

Context of Sentencing

Bolsonaro was convicted of orchestrating a conspiracy aimed at keeping him in power after he was defeated in the national vote to his political opponent, President Lula.

Supreme Court justices said that he knew of a scheme which included plans to kill his opponent and his running partner, Geraldo Alckmin, and to imprison and murder Alexandre de Moraes - the High Court judge who has been overseeing the former president's case.

The scheme was prevented because it couldn't obtain the support of the army and air force commanders. The current president was sworn in without problem on the first day of 2023.

But a seven days after, on January 8th, numerous his followers invaded and destroyed government buildings in the capital, Brasília.

The police stepped in and around 1,500 people were taken into custody.

The judges found that the rioters had been provoked by the former president whose scheme, they said, was for the national armed forces to step in, bring back stability and reinstate his authority.

At the time, the legal team called the decades-long sentence "absurdly excessive.

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

The former president called the court case a "witch hunt and said it was designed to prevent him competing in the next presidential race.