Jair Bolsonaro detained after being considered a risk of fleeing
The former Brazilian leader has been taken into custody after authorities concluded he posed a concrete flight risk while under home confinement.
The one-time leader was sentenced of orchestrating a military coup in last fall and handed more than a 27-year term in prison, but he remained under confinement pending appeals.
High Court Judge Alexandre de Moraes said the action to imprison the 70-year-old politician was a precautionary step after "new facts" came to light.
This involved trying to remove his tracking device and a summons to a demonstration that could "allow for a chance to flee".
Judicial Records Show Escape Risks
In a filing authorising the custody, the judge said intelligence from the unit overseeing Bolsonaro's house arrest suggested the one-time head of state's plan to remove the tracking monitor to secure accomplishment in his escape.
This, it said, would be "facilitated by the disorder caused by the gathering called by his child.
His son, Flávio Bolsonaro, who serves as a senator, called for a meeting of his supporters near the former president's residence to take place on Saturday evening.
His son wrote on online platforms on the previous day: Will you battle for your homeland, or watch it all from your mobile device there on your sofa? I urge you to struggle with us."
He said the demonstration would be so backers could "pray for his health and for the reestablishment of democratic governance in our land."
Diplomatic Refuge Fears
Part of the judge's determination was the potential of his move to embassies near the dwelling, considering that the probes revealed a record of arranging to request asylum through a diplomatic representation", a announcement said.
The judicial paperwork emphasizes that the American diplomatic mission in the national capital, Brasilia, is positioned around 13km from his dwelling.
Global Responses
His judicial problems have drawn the ire of fellow right-wing populist American leader Trump, causing him to implement a 50% tariff on imports of Brazilian goods.
The former president is being detained in a national police facility in Brazil's capital city and will have a detention review on the next day.
Recent Legal Requests
It was only on Friday that the ex-leader's attorneys asked the High Court to allow him to serve his whole jail sentence under house arrest, with digital surveillance.
They also requested that he be allowed to depart his residence for medical care, saying he demanded frequent medical attention for pulmonary infections and other health problems.
Details of Guilty Verdict
The former president was found guilty of leading a plot aimed at keeping him in power after he was defeated in the presidential race to his ideological adversary, President Lula.
Supreme Court justices said that he was aware of a plan which encompassed plans to assassinate his opponent and his vice-presidential running mate, Alckmin, and to arrest and execute Alexandre de Moraes - the top judicial official who has been managing the former president's case.
The conspiracy was stopped because it couldn't obtain the endorsement of the army and air force commanders. His successor was sworn in without problem on the first day of 2023.
But a week later, on January 8th, many his followers invaded and destroyed government buildings in the federal district, the capital city.
The security forces stepped in and around fifteen hundred individuals were taken into custody.
The justices found that the rioters had been incited by Bolsonaro whose scheme, they said, was for the Brazilian military to intervene, reestablish control and return him to office.
At the moment, Bolsonaro's lawyers called the decades-long sentence "absurdly excessive.
He was also banned from campaigning for office until 2060 - eight years after the end of his sentence.
The one-time head of state called the court case a targeted investigation" and said it was designed to prevent him participating in the 2026 presidential election.