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Bolsonaro has been taken into custody after authorities concluded he posed a concrete flight risk while under house arrest.

The one-time leader was convicted of planning a military coup in last fall and handed more than a 27-year term in jail, but he continued under home detention pending legal challenges.

Brazilian Supreme Court Justice Justice Moraes said the decision to arrest the septuagenarian politician was a safety action after recent developments were revealed.

This involved seeking to disable his electronic bracelet and a summons to a demonstration that could facilitate a potential flight.

Court Filing Details Escape Concerns

In a filing authorising the custody, Justice Moraes said data from the centre monitoring Bolsonaro's house arrest suggested the ex-president's "intention to break the tracking monitor to guarantee victory in his escape.

This, it said, would be made easier by the chaos caused by the gathering called by his offspring.

His son, Flávio Bolsonaro, who works as a legislator, called for a meeting of his backers near the former president's residence to take place on Saturday evening.

The senator wrote on online platforms on Friday: Do you plan to struggle for your country, or see it all from your mobile device there on your couch? I call on you to battle with us."

He said the vigil would be so backers could offer prayers for his health and for the return of democracy in our land."

Diplomatic Refuge Fears

Part of Justice Moraes's ruling was the possibility of Bolsonaro's transfer to embassies near the home, considering that the inquiries revealed a background of planning to request asylum through a embassy office", a declaration said.

The court filing highlights that the US embassy in the capital, Brasilia, is located around 13km from the former president's residence.

Global Responses

His judicial problems have generated frustration from fellow populist conservative US President Trump, causing him to enact a 50% tariff on goods coming from Brazil.

Bolsonaro is being detained in a national police facility in Brazil's capital city and will experience a custody hearing on Sunday.

Recent Legal Requests

It was only on last Friday that the ex-leader's attorneys asked the High Court to permit him to fulfill his full incarceration period under home confinement, with tracking devices.

They also asked that the former president be allowed to exit his dwelling for medical care, saying he required regular treatment for lung conditions and other illnesses.

Details of Guilty Verdict

He was convicted of heading a conspiracy aimed at maintaining his control after he lost the 2022 election to his left-wing rival, Lula.

Top judicial officials said that he had knowledge of a scheme which encompassed plans to assassinate his opponent and his VP candidate, Alckmin, and to arrest and execute the presiding judge - the Supreme Court justice who has been managing his judicial proceedings.

The scheme was stopped because it couldn't obtain the endorsement of the armed forces officials. The current president was sworn in without problem on the first day of 2023.

But a week later, on January 8th, thousands of his followers stormed and vandalised official structures in the capital, the capital city.

The law enforcement intervened and around 1,500 people were arrested.

The judges found that the demonstrators had been provoked by the former president whose plan, they said, was for the country's army to take action, bring back stability and bring him back to power.

At the time, the legal team called the decades-long sentence "absurdly excessive.

He was also banned from running for public office until 2060 - eight years after the completion of his term.

The former president called the trial a political persecution and said it was aimed at blocking him competing in the 2026 national vote.