The former Brazilian president detained after being declared a flight risk
Jair Bolsonaro has been arrested after authorities found he posed a definite escape threat while under domestic detention.
The ex-president was sentenced of plotting a government overthrow in September and handed more than a 27-year term in prison, but he was staying under confinement pending court reviews.
Brazilian Supreme Court Justice Justice Moraes said the decision to arrest the 70-year-old politician was a preventative measure after recent developments were revealed.
This encompassed seeking to disable his tracking device and a invitation to a supporters' gathering that could facilitate a potential flight.
Legal Document Reveals Escape Risks
In a paperwork permitting the detention, the judge said information from the unit overseeing Bolsonaro's house arrest suggested the ex-president's "intention to break the surveillance device to ensure success in his flight.
This, it said, would be "facilitated by the chaos caused by the protest called by his child.
His child, his son Flávio, who works as a legislator, called for a assembly of his supporters near his father's house to take place on the weekend.
Flávio Bolsonaro wrote on social media on the previous day: Do you plan to struggle for your homeland, or see it all from your smartphone there on your sofa? I invite you to struggle with us."
He said the demonstration would be so backers could "pray for his well-being and for the reestablishment of democratic governance in our country."
Embassy Asylum Concerns
Part of the magistrate's decision was the potential of Bolsonaro's move to embassies near the home, considering that the inquiries revealed a history of arranging to request asylum through a embassy office", a statement said.
The legal document underscores that the US embassy in the capital, Brasilia, is situated around 13km from the former president's residence.
Global Responses
Bolsonaro's legal woes have drawn the ire of fellow populist conservative United States President Trump, prompting him to enact a fifty percent tax on Brazilian product imports.
The former president is being detained in a national police facility in the capital and will undergo a imprisonment assessment on the following day.
Recent Legal Requests
It was only on the previous day that the his legal team asked the Top Court to permit him to complete his entire prison term under house arrest, with electronic monitoring.
They also asked that Bolsonaro be authorized to exit his dwelling for healthcare, saying he demanded ongoing care for lung conditions and other ailments.
Background on Conviction
The former president was convicted of orchestrating a scheme aimed at retaining his authority after he was defeated in the national vote to his political opponent, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.
Top judicial officials said that he knew of a plot which encompassed plans to murder his opponent and his running partner, Geraldo Alckmin, and to detain and kill Justice Moraes - the High Court judge who has been presiding over his judicial proceedings.
The conspiracy was stopped because it couldn't obtain the backing of the military leaders. Lula was inaugurated without problem on January 1st, 2023.
But a following week, on the eighth of January, many Bolsonaro supporters invaded and destroyed government buildings in the federal district, Brazil's capital.
The security forces took action and around approximately 1,500 persons were taken into custody.
The judges found that the protesters had been incited by the former president whose strategy, they said, was for the Brazilian military to step in, restore order and return him to office.
At the time, his attorneys called the decades-long sentence "absurdly excessive.
He was also prohibited from seeking elected position until 2060 - eight years after the conclusion of his imprisonment.
The ex-leader called the legal proceedings a targeted investigation" and said it was intended to stop him competing in the next presidential race.