Jair Bolsonaro has been detained after authorities determined he posed a serious risk of fleeing while under house arrest.
The ex-president was sentenced of orchestrating a armed takeover in last fall and handed more than a 27-year term in incarceration, but he remained under confinement pending appeals.
Top Judicial Official Alexandre de Moraes said the move to detain the elderly politician was a safety action after recent developments emerged.
This involved trying to remove his electronic bracelet and a invitation to a demonstration that could facilitate a possible escape.
Legal Document Reveals Flight Fears
In a paperwork permitting the detention, the magistrate said data from the facility tracking his home detention suggested the former leader's "intention to break the surveillance device to ensure success in his escape.
This, it said, would be made easier by the confusion caused by the gathering called by his offspring.
His son, Flávio Bolsonaro, who holds office as a congressional representative, called for a assembly of his supporters near Bolsonaro's home to take place on Saturday night.
His son wrote on social media on last Friday: Will you battle for your country, or observe everything from your mobile device there on your settee? I invite you to battle with us."
He said the vigil would be so backers could "pray for his health and for the return of democracy in our nation."
Diplomatic Refuge Fears
Part of the judge's determination was the chance of his move to foreign missions near the home, considering that the investigations revealed a history of planning to request asylum through a consular facility", a statement said.
The court filing underscores that the United States embassy in the capital, the capital city, is located around 8 miles from the former president's residence.
Worldwide Consequences
The former president's legal troubles have generated frustration from fellow right-wing populist US President President Trump, prompting him to implement a 50% tariff on goods coming from Brazil.
The former president is being detained in a national police facility in Brazil's capital city and will undergo a custody hearing on the following day.
Recent Legal Requests
It was only on last Friday that the former president's lawyers asked the Top Court to allow him to serve his whole jail sentence under house arrest, with digital surveillance.
They also asked that he be allowed to depart his residence for medical treatment, saying he demanded regular treatment for respiratory ailments and other health problems.
Background on Conviction
Bolsonaro was convicted of heading a conspiracy aimed at maintaining his control after he failed to win the national vote to his political opponent, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.
Top judicial officials said that he was aware of a scheme which included plans to assassinate Lula and his running partner, Alckmin, and to imprison and murder Justice Moraes - the High Court judge who has been managing Bolsonaro's trial.
The plot was prevented because it didn't receive the support of the army and air force commanders. Lula was inaugurated without incident on the first day of 2023.
But a following week, on January 8th, numerous his backers attacked and damaged official structures in the capital, Brazil's capital.
The security forces stepped in and around approximately 1,500 persons were detained.
The magistrates found that the demonstrators had been encouraged by the former president whose plan, they said, was for the national armed forces to intervene, reestablish control and reinstate his authority.
At the moment, his attorneys called the decades-long sentence extremely harsh.
He was also barred from running for public office until the year 2060 - eight years later after the completion of his term.
The ex-leader called the court case a "witch hunt and said it was designed to prevent him competing in the next presidential race.
