Bolsonaro taken into custody after being deemed a flight risk
Bolsonaro has been taken into custody after authorities determined he posed a concrete flight risk while under domestic detention.
The former head of state was sentenced of orchestrating a armed takeover in last fall and handed more than a 27-year term in prison, but he continued under confinement pending legal challenges.
High Court Judge Alexandre de Moraes said the action to imprison the 70-year-old politician was a precautionary step after fresh information came to light.
This included attempting to break his tracking device and a invitation to a supporters' gathering that could facilitate a potential flight.
Court Filing Details Escape Risks
In a paperwork permitting the arrest, the magistrate said data from the unit overseeing his home detention suggested the former leader's "intention to break the electronic ankle bracelet to secure accomplishment in his escape.
This, it said, would be made easier by the disorder caused by the demonstration called by his offspring.
His child, Flávio Bolsonaro, who serves as a senator, 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 watch it all from your mobile device there on your sofa? I urge you to battle with us."
He said the gathering would be so supporters could offer prayers for his health and for the reestablishment of democratic governance in our country."
Diplomatic Refuge Fears
Part of the magistrate's determination was the chance of the former president's transfer to embassies near the dwelling, considering that the inquiries revealed a history of arranging to ask for protection through a diplomatic representation", a declaration said.
The judicial paperwork emphasizes that the United States embassy in the national capital, Brasilia, is situated around 13km from the former president's residence.
International Reactions
Bolsonaro's legal woes have provoked anger from fellow conservative nationalist United States President Trump, leading him to enact a fifty percent tax on Brazilian product imports.
Bolsonaro is being detained in a federal law enforcement building in the capital and will undergo a custody hearing on the next day.
Recent Judicial Appeals
It was only on last Friday that the former president's lawyers asked the Top Court to authorize him to complete his entire prison term under domestic detention, with electronic monitoring.
They also petitioned that he be authorized to leave his home for healthcare, saying he required regular treatment for lung conditions and other illnesses.
Details of Guilty Verdict
He was found guilty of orchestrating a conspiracy aimed at keeping him in power after he was defeated in the presidential race to his left-wing rival, Lula.
Top judicial officials said that he had knowledge of a plan which involved plans to kill his opponent and his vice-presidential running mate, Geraldo Alckmin, and to detain and kill Alexandre de Moraes - the top judicial official who has been overseeing the former president's case.
The conspiracy was thwarted because it couldn't obtain the endorsement of the military leaders. His successor was sworn in without issue on January 1st, 2023.
But a seven days after, on January 8th, numerous his backers attacked and damaged official structures in the federal district, Brazil's capital.
The law enforcement took action and around approximately 1,500 persons were taken into custody.
The justices found that the protesters had been provoked by him whose scheme, they said, was for the country's army to intervene, restore order and return him to office.
At the time, Bolsonaro's lawyers called the over 27-year sentence unreasonably severe".
He was also barred from running for public office until twenty-sixty - eight years later after the end of his sentence.
The one-time head of state called the trial a political persecution and said it was designed to prevent him participating in the 2026 presidential election.