Jair Bolsonaro taken into custody after being deemed a risk of fleeing

The former Brazilian leader has been arrested after authorities concluded he posed a concrete flight risk while under home confinement.

The ex-president was found guilty of plotting a military coup in last fall and sentenced more than a 27-year term in prison, but he remained under confinement pending appeals.

Top Judicial Official the presiding justice said the move to detain the elderly politician was a precautionary step after recent developments came to light.

This included seeking to disable his electronic bracelet and a summons to a supporters' gathering that could facilitate a chance to flee".

Legal Document Reveals Escape Risks

In a filing authorising the detention, Justice Moraes said intelligence from the unit overseeing his home detention suggested the one-time head of state's aim to disable the electronic ankle bracelet to secure accomplishment in his escape.

This, it said, would be "facilitated by the chaos caused by the gathering called by his son.

His offspring, Flávio, who works as a legislator, called for a assembly of his followers near his father's house to take place on Saturday night.

His son wrote on digital networks on last Friday: Do you plan to struggle for your homeland, or observe everything from your mobile device there on your couch? I invite you to fight with us."

He said the gathering would be so supporters could seek divine intervention for his well-being and for the reestablishment of democratic governance in our land."

Embassy Asylum Concerns

Part of the judge's determination was the possibility of the former president's transfer to foreign missions near the residence, considering that the probes revealed a background of planning to ask for protection through a embassy office", a announcement said.

The court filing emphasizes that the US embassy 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 US President Donald Trump, leading him to enact a fifty percent tax on imports of Brazilian goods.

The former president is being kept in a federal law enforcement building in the capital and will undergo a detention review on the next day.

Latest Court Petitions

It was only on last Friday that the his legal team asked the High Court to authorize him to fulfill his full incarceration period under home confinement, with digital surveillance.

They also petitioned that the former president be permitted to leave his home for medical treatment, saying he required regular treatment for respiratory ailments and other health problems.

Details of Guilty Verdict

Bolsonaro was found guilty of leading a conspiracy aimed at maintaining his control after he failed to win the 2022 election to his left-wing rival, Lula.

Supreme Court justices said that he was aware of a scheme which involved plans to murder his opponent and his running partner, Alckmin, and to arrest and execute Justice Moraes - the Supreme Court justice who has been presiding over the former president's case.

The conspiracy was stopped because it failed to get the endorsement of the military leaders. The current president was inaugurated without issue on January 1st, 2023.

But a following week, on January 8th, many Bolsonaro supporters invaded and destroyed official structures in the capital, the capital city.

The police took action and around 1,500 people were taken into custody.

The justices found that the protesters had been provoked by Bolsonaro whose plan, they said, was for the Brazilian military to take action, bring back stability and reinstate his authority.

At the time, Bolsonaro's lawyers called the over 27-year sentence unreasonably severe".

He was also barred from campaigning for office until the year 2060 - a decade minus two years after the completion of his term.

The one-time head of state called the court case a "witch hunt and said it was aimed at blocking him participating in the 2026 national vote.