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Bolsonaro has been taken into custody after authorities determined he posed a serious risk of fleeing while under house arrest.

The one-time leader was found guilty of orchestrating a government overthrow in September and sentenced more than a 27-year term in jail, but he continued under house arrest pending legal challenges.

Brazilian Supreme Court Justice Justice Moraes said the move to detain the 70-year-old politician was a preventative measure after "new facts" emerged.

This encompassed attempting to break his tracking device and a call for a public vigil that could "allow for a chance to flee".

Judicial Records Show Escape Concerns

In a paperwork permitting the custody, Justice Moraes said data from the facility tracking his home detention suggested the ex-president's "intention to break the tracking monitor to secure accomplishment in his escape.

This, it said, would be made easier by the confusion caused by the gathering called by his child.

His child, Flávio Bolsonaro, who serves as a legislator, called for a assembly of his supporters near Bolsonaro's home to take place on Saturday night.

The senator wrote on online platforms on the previous day: "Are you going to fight for your country, or observe everything from your phone there on your settee? I call on you to battle with us."

He said the demonstration would be so supporters could "pray for his physical condition and for the return of democracy in our country."

Diplomatic Refuge Fears

Part of Justice Moraes's ruling was the potential of the former president's "relocation to diplomatic missions near the dwelling, considering that the probes revealed a record of organizing to ask for protection through a diplomatic representation", a declaration said.

The legal document underscores that the US embassy in the federal district, the capital city, is located around approximately 13 kilometers from his dwelling.

Global Responses

The former president's legal troubles have provoked anger from fellow right-wing populist United States President Donald Trump, leading him to implement a half-rate duty on goods coming from Brazil.

He is being kept in a federal law enforcement building in Brasilia and will have a detention review on Sunday.

Recent Legal Requests

It was only on Friday that the ex-leader's attorneys asked the Top Court to permit him to complete his entire prison term under home confinement, with digital surveillance.

They also asked that he be allowed to leave his home for healthcare, saying he demanded frequent medical attention for lung conditions and other illnesses.

Background on Conviction

He was determined responsible of leading a scheme aimed at maintaining his control after he failed to win the national vote to his left-wing rival, President Lula.

High Court judges said that he was aware of a plan which involved plans to kill Lula and his running partner, his vice-presidential candidate, and to arrest and execute Alexandre de Moraes - the High Court judge who has been managing Bolsonaro's trial.

The scheme was thwarted because it didn't receive the support of the armed forces officials. Lula was inaugurated without problem on the first day of 2023.

But a following week, on January 8th, many his followers attacked and damaged public facilities in the federal district, Brazil's capital.

The police stepped in and around approximately 1,500 persons were detained.

The magistrates found that the demonstrators had been incited by the former president whose plan, they said, was for the country's army to step in, restore order and bring him back to power.

At the period, Bolsonaro's lawyers called the 27 years and three months sentence unreasonably severe".

He was also barred from seeking elected position until the year 2060 - eight years after the conclusion of his imprisonment.

The former president called the legal proceedings a "witch hunt and said it was aimed at blocking him running in the 2026 presidential election.