Jair Bolsonaro has been detained after authorities found he posed a concrete flight risk while under home confinement.
The one-time leader was convicted of planning a military coup in the ninth month and given more than 27 years in prison, but he remained under house arrest pending appeals.
Top Judicial Official Justice Moraes said the decision to arrest the septuagenarian politician was a safety action after recent developments emerged.
This encompassed trying to remove his electronic bracelet and a call for a supporters' gathering that could "allow for a potential flight.
Court Filing Details Escape Concerns
In a filing authorising the arrest, the magistrate said information from the unit overseeing Bolsonaro's house arrest suggested the former leader's aim to disable the electronic ankle bracelet to ensure success in his getaway".
This, it said, would be "facilitated by the confusion caused by the demonstration called by his child.
His son, Flávio Bolsonaro, who serves as a senator, called for a assembly of his backers near the former president's residence to take place on Saturday evening.
The senator wrote on social media on last Friday: Will you battle for your nation, or see it all from your smartphone there on your couch? I invite you to struggle with us."
He said the gathering would be so followers could offer prayers for his health and for the restoration of democratic rule in our land."
Diplomatic Refuge Fears
Part of Justice Moraes's decision was the chance of Bolsonaro's "relocation to foreign missions near the dwelling, considering that the probes revealed a history of arranging to request asylum through a embassy office", a declaration said.
The legal document emphasizes that the United States embassy in the federal district, the capital city, is positioned around approximately 13 kilometers from the former president's residence.
Global Responses
His judicial problems have generated frustration from fellow right-wing populist American leader Donald Trump, prompting him to enact a fifty percent tax on imports of Brazilian goods.
Bolsonaro is being detained in a Federal Police station in Brasilia and will undergo a custody hearing on the following day.
Recent Judicial Appeals
It was only on the previous day that the his legal team asked the Supreme Court to allow him to complete his entire prison term under house arrest, with electronic monitoring.
They also asked that Bolsonaro be permitted to exit his dwelling for medical treatment, saying he required regular treatment for pulmonary infections and other ailments.
Context of Sentencing
He was found guilty of orchestrating a plot aimed at keeping him in power after he was defeated in the 2022 election to his left-wing rival, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.
Top judicial officials said that he knew of a scheme which included plans to kill the current president and his VP candidate, his vice-presidential candidate, and to detain and kill the presiding judge - the Supreme Court justice who has been presiding over Bolsonaro's trial.
The conspiracy was stopped because it didn't receive the endorsement of the armed forces officials. The current president was took office without issue on January 1st, 2023.
But a week later, on the eighth of January, numerous Bolsonaro supporters invaded and destroyed public facilities in the national capital, the capital city.
The law enforcement took action and around approximately 1,500 persons were arrested.
The judges found that the protesters had been provoked by Bolsonaro whose plan, they said, was for the Brazilian military to take action, reestablish control and bring him back to power.
At the period, the legal team called the over 27-year sentence extremely harsh.
He was also prohibited from seeking elected position until the year 2060 - eight years later after the completion of his term.
The former president called the trial a targeted investigation" and said it was designed to prevent him participating in the next presidential race.
