Bolsonaro taken into custody after being deemed a risk of fleeing
Jair Bolsonaro has been arrested after authorities concluded he posed a concrete flight risk while under home confinement.
The ex-president was found guilty of orchestrating a military coup in September and handed more than over two decades in prison, but he was staying under house arrest pending court reviews.
High Court Judge Alexandre de Moraes said the decision to arrest the elderly politician was a precautionary step after "new facts" were revealed.
This included seeking to disable his electronic bracelet and a call for a demonstration that could "allow for a chance to flee".
Legal Document Reveals Flight Fears
In a paperwork permitting the detention, the judge said intelligence from the centre monitoring his home detention suggested the one-time head of state's aim to disable the electronic ankle bracelet to secure accomplishment in his flight.
This, it said, would be "facilitated by the chaos caused by the gathering called by his offspring.
His offspring, Flávio Bolsonaro, who serves as a senator, called for a meeting of his backers near his father's house to take place on the weekend.
The senator wrote on digital networks on last Friday: Do you plan to struggle for your country, or watch it all from your phone there on your settee? I invite you to fight with us."
He said the vigil would be so supporters could offer prayers for his well-being and for the restoration of democratic rule in our nation."
Diplomatic Refuge Fears
Part of the magistrate's ruling was the chance of Bolsonaro's "relocation to diplomatic missions near the home, considering that the probes revealed a history of organizing to seek refuge through a consular facility", a declaration said.
The judicial paperwork emphasizes that the US embassy in the national capital, Brazil's capital, is positioned around approximately 13 kilometers from his dwelling.
Worldwide Consequences
Bolsonaro's legal woes have provoked anger from fellow right-wing populist United States President Donald Trump, leading him to implement a half-rate duty on imports of Brazilian goods.
He is being held in a national police facility in Brazil's capital city and will experience a detention review on the following day.
Recent Legal Requests
It was only on Friday that the ex-leader's attorneys asked the Top Court to permit him to complete his entire prison term under house arrest, with tracking devices.
They also petitioned that the former president be allowed to exit his dwelling for medical treatment, saying he demanded ongoing care for pulmonary infections and other ailments.
Background on Conviction
The former president was determined responsible of orchestrating a scheme aimed at keeping him in power after he failed to win the 2022 election to his left-wing rival, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.
High Court judges said that he was aware of a plot which included plans to murder the current president and his running partner, his vice-presidential candidate, and to arrest and execute the presiding judge - the High Court judge who has been managing his judicial proceedings.
The plot was prevented because it failed to get the support of the armed forces officials. His successor was sworn in without incident on 1 January 2023.
But a following week, on 8 January, numerous Bolsonaro supporters attacked and damaged public facilities in the national capital, Brasília.
The law enforcement took action and around fifteen hundred individuals were taken into custody.
The judges found that the rioters had been provoked by him whose plan, they said, was for the national armed forces to take action, reestablish control and bring him back to power.
At the moment, the legal team called the decades-long sentence unreasonably severe".
He was also barred from seeking elected position until 2060 - eight years after the end of his sentence.
The one-time head of state called the court case a "witch hunt and said it was designed to prevent him participating in the next presidential race.