Jair Bolsonaro has been detained after authorities found he posed a concrete flight risk while under home confinement.
The former head of state was found guilty of orchestrating a military coup in last fall and handed more than a 27-year term in prison, but he continued under confinement pending court reviews.
Top Judicial Official Alexandre de Moraes said the move to detain the elderly politician was a safety action after "new facts" came to light.
This included seeking to disable his ankle monitor and a call for a supporters' gathering that could enable a potential flight.
Legal Document Reveals Escape Risks
In a paperwork permitting the arrest, the judge said data from the facility tracking Bolsonaro's house arrest suggested the former leader's plan to remove the surveillance device to ensure success in his escape.
This, it said, would be assisted by the chaos caused by the gathering called by his son.
His son, Flávio Bolsonaro, who holds office as a senator, called for a meeting of his supporters near Bolsonaro's home to take place on Saturday night.
His son wrote on online platforms on last Friday: Will you battle for your country, or watch it all from your phone there on your sofa? I call on you to fight with us."
He said the gathering would be so backers could offer prayers for his physical condition and for the return of democracy in our land."
Embassy Asylum Concerns
Part of Justice Moraes's determination was the potential of his "relocation to embassies near the home, considering that the probes revealed a record of arranging to request asylum through a diplomatic representation", a declaration said.
The judicial paperwork highlights that the United States embassy in the federal district, Brazil's capital, is situated around approximately 13 kilometers from the former president's residence.
International Reactions
Bolsonaro's legal woes have generated frustration from fellow populist conservative United States President President Trump, causing him to implement a 50% tariff on goods coming from Brazil.
Bolsonaro is being kept in a national police facility in Brazil's capital city and will have a imprisonment assessment on the next day.
Latest Court Petitions
It was only on Friday that the his legal team asked the Supreme Court to allow him to complete his entire prison term under house arrest, with digital surveillance.
They also asked that Bolsonaro be allowed to depart his residence for medical care, saying he required ongoing care for respiratory ailments and other illnesses.
Background on Conviction
The former president was determined responsible of heading a conspiracy aimed at maintaining his control after he was defeated in the 2022 election to his political opponent, President Lula.
Top judicial officials said that he was aware of a scheme which involved plans to assassinate the current president and his running partner, Alckmin, and to arrest and execute Alexandre de Moraes - the Supreme Court justice who has been overseeing the former president's case.
The plot was prevented because it didn't receive the support of the military leaders. Lula was inaugurated without incident on the first day of 2023.
But a following week, on the eighth of January, numerous Bolsonaro supporters attacked and damaged official structures in the federal district, the capital city.
The law enforcement stepped in and around fifteen hundred individuals were detained.
The judges found that the protesters had been encouraged by the former president whose scheme, they said, was for the national armed forces to step in, reestablish control and bring him back to power.
At the time, Bolsonaro's lawyers called the 27 years and three months sentence unreasonably severe".
He was also barred from campaigning for office until the year 2060 - a decade minus two years after the conclusion of his imprisonment.
The ex-leader called the court case a targeted investigation" and said it was designed to prevent him running in the 2026 presidential election.
