Jair Bolsonaro arrested after being considered a flight risk

Bolsonaro has been taken into custody after authorities concluded he posed a definite escape threat while under domestic detention.

The ex-president was found guilty of planning a military coup in the ninth month and given more than 27 years in jail, but he continued under home detention pending legal challenges.

Brazilian Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes said the move to detain the elderly politician was a preventative measure after "new facts" were revealed.

This included trying to remove his electronic bracelet and a invitation to a supporters' gathering that could enable a potential flight.

Judicial Records Show Escape Risks

In a document approving the custody, the judge said intelligence from the unit overseeing Bolsonaro's house arrest suggested the former leader's plan to remove the surveillance device to guarantee victory in his getaway".

This, it said, would be assisted by the chaos caused by the protest called by his child.

His son, Flávio Bolsonaro, who serves as a legislator, called for a assembly of his followers near Bolsonaro's home to take place on Saturday night.

His son wrote on social media on Friday: "Are you going to fight for your nation, or see it all from your phone there on your couch? I invite you to fight with us."

He said the demonstration would be so followers could "pray for his well-being and for the reestablishment of democratic governance in our nation."

Embassy Asylum Concerns

Part of the judge's ruling was the possibility of the former president's move to diplomatic missions near the dwelling, considering that the inquiries revealed a history of organizing to request asylum through a diplomatic representation", a statement said.

The judicial paperwork emphasizes that the US embassy in the national capital, Brasilia, is located around 13km from his dwelling.

International Reactions

His judicial problems have drawn the ire of fellow populist conservative US President President Trump, causing him to enact a fifty percent tax on Brazilian product imports.

He is being detained in a federal law enforcement building in the capital and will experience a imprisonment assessment on the next day.

Latest Court Petitions

It was only on the previous day that the former president's lawyers asked the Top Court to allow him to complete his entire prison term under domestic detention, with tracking devices.

They also asked that Bolsonaro be allowed to exit his dwelling for medical treatment, saying he needed frequent medical attention for respiratory ailments and other ailments.

Context of Sentencing

He was convicted of leading a scheme aimed at retaining his authority after he failed to win the national vote to his political opponent, Lula.

Top judicial officials said that he was aware of a plan which included plans to murder Lula and his VP candidate, Alckmin, and to arrest and execute the presiding judge - the Supreme Court justice who has been overseeing Bolsonaro's trial.

The scheme was prevented because it didn't receive the support of the army and air force commanders. His successor was sworn in without problem on 1 January 2023.

But a following week, on the eighth of January, thousands of Bolsonaro supporters invaded and destroyed government buildings in the federal district, Brasília.

The police took action and around fifteen hundred individuals were arrested.

The judges found that the demonstrators had been encouraged by Bolsonaro whose strategy, they said, was for the Brazilian military to step in, bring back stability and bring him back to power.

At the time, Bolsonaro's lawyers called the decades-long sentence extremely harsh.

He was also banned from running for public office until twenty-sixty - a decade minus two years after the completion of his term.

The ex-leader called the trial a targeted investigation" and said it was designed to prevent him participating in the next presidential race.