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Jair Bolsonaro has been arrested after authorities found he posed a serious risk of fleeing while under house arrest.

The former head of state was found guilty of planning a armed takeover in last fall and given more than 27 years in jail, but he was staying under house arrest pending legal challenges.

Top Judicial Official Justice Moraes said the action to imprison the 70-year-old politician was a safety action after recent developments were revealed.

This included trying to remove his ankle monitor and a call for a demonstration that could facilitate a chance to flee".

Court Filing Details Escape Risks

In a paperwork permitting the custody, the magistrate said information from the unit overseeing Bolsonaro's house arrest suggested the one-time head of state's aim to disable the tracking monitor to ensure success in his flight.

This, it said, would be "facilitated by the confusion caused by the demonstration called by his son.

His child, Flávio, who holds office as a legislator, called for a gathering of his supporters near Bolsonaro's home to take place on the weekend.

Flávio Bolsonaro wrote on digital networks on Friday: Do you plan to struggle for your country, or see it all from your mobile device there on your couch? I invite you to battle with us."

He said the gathering would be so supporters could offer prayers for his health and for the return of democracy in our nation."

Embassy Asylum Concerns

Part of the magistrate's determination was the chance of his transfer to diplomatic missions near the residence, considering that the probes revealed a history of organizing to seek refuge through a consular facility", a statement said.

The judicial paperwork highlights that the American diplomatic mission in the national capital, Brasilia, is located around 13km from the former president's residence.

International Reactions

The former president's legal troubles have provoked anger from fellow conservative nationalist US President President Trump, causing him to enact a 50% tariff on goods coming from Brazil.

Bolsonaro is being detained in a national police facility in the capital and will have a imprisonment assessment on the following day.

Recent Judicial Appeals

It was only on last Friday that the former president's lawyers asked the High Court to authorize him to serve his whole jail sentence under domestic detention, with digital surveillance.

They also requested that Bolsonaro be allowed to leave his home for healthcare, saying he needed frequent medical attention for lung conditions and other health problems.

Details of Guilty Verdict

The former president was convicted of heading a conspiracy aimed at retaining his authority after he was defeated in the national vote to his ideological adversary, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.

High Court judges said that he was aware of a plan which encompassed plans to assassinate Lula and his vice-presidential running mate, Geraldo Alckmin, and to imprison and murder Alexandre de Moraes - the High Court judge who has been managing the former president's case.

The scheme was thwarted because it didn't receive the endorsement of the military leaders. The current president was inaugurated without incident on 1 January 2023.

But a seven days after, on 8 January, thousands of his backers invaded and destroyed government buildings in the capital, Brazil's capital.

The security forces intervened and around 1,500 people were detained.

The magistrates found that the protesters had been encouraged by Bolsonaro whose strategy, they said, was for the country's army to step in, bring back stability and bring him back to power.

At the period, Bolsonaro's lawyers called the decades-long sentence "absurdly excessive.

He was also prohibited from campaigning for office until 2060 - eight years after the conclusion of his imprisonment.

The ex-leader called the trial a political persecution and said it was aimed at blocking him running in the next presidential race.