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

The one-time leader was convicted of orchestrating a government overthrow in September and sentenced more than over two decades in prison, but he continued under house arrest pending court reviews.

High Court Judge the presiding justice said the action to imprison the elderly politician was a preventative measure after "new facts" came to light.

This included trying to remove his tracking device and a call for a supporters' gathering that could facilitate a chance to flee".

Court Filing Details Flight Fears

In a paperwork permitting the custody, the magistrate said information from the facility tracking the former president's confinement suggested the ex-president's plan to remove the surveillance device to secure accomplishment in his getaway".

This, it said, would be made easier by the disorder caused by the protest called by his child.

His child, his son Flávio, who works as a congressional representative, called for a assembly of his supporters near his father's house to take place on Saturday evening.

Flávio Bolsonaro wrote on social media on the previous day: Do you plan to struggle for your nation, or observe everything from your mobile device there on your sofa? I call on you to battle with us."

He said the gathering would be so supporters could offer prayers for his well-being and for the return of democracy in our country."

Embassy Asylum Concerns

Part of Justice Moraes's determination was the chance of the former president's "relocation to embassies near the residence, considering that the inquiries revealed a background of arranging to seek refuge through a embassy office", a announcement said.

The judicial paperwork emphasizes that the US embassy in the capital, Brazil's capital, is positioned around 8 miles from the former president's residence.

International Reactions

Bolsonaro's legal woes have provoked anger from fellow populist conservative US President Donald Trump, causing him to enact a 50% tariff on imports of Brazilian goods.

Bolsonaro 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 last Friday that the former president's lawyers asked the High Court to allow him to serve his whole jail sentence under home confinement, with tracking devices.

They also asked that the former president be allowed to depart his residence for healthcare, saying he needed frequent medical attention for respiratory ailments and other ailments.

Context of Sentencing

Bolsonaro was found guilty of leading a plot aimed at maintaining his control after he was defeated in the presidential race to his political opponent, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.

Top judicial officials said that he was aware of a scheme which involved plans to assassinate his opponent and his running partner, Geraldo Alckmin, and to arrest and execute Justice Moraes - the top judicial official who has been overseeing the former president's case.

The scheme was stopped because it failed to get the endorsement of the armed forces officials. His successor was took office without problem on January 1st, 2023.

But a week later, on 8 January, numerous his backers attacked and damaged government buildings in the national capital, the capital city.

The security forces intervened and around fifteen hundred individuals were detained.

The justices found that the rioters had been incited by the former president whose plan, they said, was for the country's army to step in, reestablish control and reinstate his authority.

At the period, Bolsonaro's lawyers called the 27 years and three months sentence extremely harsh.

He was also prohibited from campaigning for office until the year 2060 - eight years after the completion of his term.

The one-time head of state called the legal proceedings a political persecution and said it was aimed at blocking him running in the 2026 national vote.