Jair Bolsonaro arrested after being declared a risk of fleeing
Jair Bolsonaro has been detained after authorities determined he posed a concrete flight risk while under domestic detention.
The one-time leader was convicted of orchestrating a government overthrow in September and handed more than a 27-year term in jail, but he remained under house arrest pending court reviews.
High Court Judge the presiding justice said the action to imprison the elderly politician was a safety action after "new facts" came to light.
This encompassed seeking to disable his electronic bracelet and a call for a public vigil that could enable a possible escape.
Court Filing Details Flight Fears
In a filing authorising the custody, the judge said data from the centre monitoring his home detention suggested the former leader's "intention to break the surveillance device to secure accomplishment in his flight.
This, it said, would be made easier by the confusion caused by the protest called by his child.
His child, his son Flávio, who works as a legislator, called for a gathering of his followers near the former president's residence to take place on Saturday night.
Flávio Bolsonaro wrote on digital networks on last Friday: "Are you going to fight for your nation, or observe everything from your phone there on your sofa? I invite you to fight with us."
He said the vigil would be so supporters could seek divine intervention for his well-being and for the restoration of democratic rule in our nation."
Diplomatic Refuge Fears
Part of the judge's decision was the chance of his transfer to embassies near the home, considering that the inquiries revealed a record of arranging to seek refuge through a diplomatic representation", a statement said.
The judicial paperwork underscores that the United States embassy in the capital, Brasilia, is located around approximately 13 kilometers from the former president's residence.
Global Responses
The former president's legal troubles have generated frustration from fellow populist conservative United States President President Trump, leading him to implement a 50% tariff on goods coming from Brazil.
The former president is being kept in a national police facility in Brasilia and will experience a detention review on the next day.
Recent Legal Requests
It was only on Friday that the his legal team asked the Supreme Court to allow him to serve his whole jail sentence under domestic detention, with digital surveillance.
They also requested that the former president be allowed to leave his home for medical treatment, saying he demanded frequent medical attention for lung conditions and other illnesses.
Details of Guilty Verdict
Bolsonaro was convicted of leading a scheme aimed at retaining his authority after he lost the 2022 election to his political opponent, President Lula.
Supreme Court justices said that he was aware of a scheme which involved plans to kill Lula and his vice-presidential running mate, Alckmin, and to imprison and murder Justice Moraes - the High Court judge who has been overseeing Bolsonaro's trial.
The scheme was stopped because it didn't receive the backing of the military leaders. Lula was took office without problem on 1 January 2023.
But a week later, on the eighth of January, many his followers invaded and destroyed public facilities in the federal district, the capital city.
The law enforcement intervened and around 1,500 people were arrested.
The magistrates found that the protesters had been incited by him whose strategy, they said, was for the country's army to intervene, restore order and return him to office.
At the period, Bolsonaro's lawyers called the 27 years and three months sentence "absurdly excessive.
He was also prohibited from campaigning for office until twenty-sixty - a decade minus two years after the conclusion of his imprisonment.
The one-time head of state called the court case a "witch hunt and said it was designed to prevent him running in the 2026 national vote.