The former Brazilian leader has been detained after authorities determined he posed a concrete flight risk while under house arrest.
The one-time leader was sentenced of plotting a armed takeover in last fall and given more than a 27-year term in prison, but he was staying under home detention pending legal challenges.
High Court Judge Alexandre de Moraes said the move to detain the elderly politician was a preventative measure after recent developments emerged.
This involved trying to remove his tracking device and a call for a demonstration that could enable a potential flight.
Legal Document Reveals Flight Fears
In a paperwork permitting the arrest, the magistrate said data from the facility tracking the former president's confinement suggested the one-time head of state's aim to disable the surveillance device to ensure success in his flight.
This, it said, would be assisted by the chaos caused by the gathering called by his child.
His son, Flávio, who works as a congressional representative, called for a assembly of his followers near the former president's residence to take place on the weekend.
His son wrote on social media on last Friday: Do you plan to struggle for your country, or see it all from your mobile device there on your settee? I invite you to battle with us."
He said the demonstration would be so followers could seek divine intervention for his well-being and for the return of democracy in our land."
Embassy Asylum Concerns
Part of Justice Moraes's decision was the potential of the former president's transfer to diplomatic missions near the home, considering that the inquiries revealed a background of planning to request asylum through a embassy office", a statement said.
The court filing underscores that the US embassy in the federal district, Brazil's capital, is located around 8 miles from Bolsonaro's home.
International Reactions
Bolsonaro's legal woes have provoked anger from fellow right-wing populist United States President Trump, prompting him to impose a 50% tariff on Brazilian product imports.
Bolsonaro is being held in a federal law enforcement building in Brasilia and will undergo a imprisonment assessment on the next day.
Recent Judicial Appeals
It was only on Friday that the former president's lawyers asked the Top Court to authorize him to serve his whole jail sentence under home confinement, with tracking devices.
They also petitioned that Bolsonaro be permitted to leave his home for medical care, saying he demanded frequent medical attention for respiratory ailments and other ailments.
Context of Sentencing
Bolsonaro was found guilty of leading a conspiracy aimed at maintaining his control after he was defeated in the national vote to his ideological adversary, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.
Top judicial officials said that he knew of a scheme which encompassed plans to assassinate the current president and his running partner, his vice-presidential candidate, and to imprison and murder Justice Moraes - the Supreme Court justice who has been overseeing the former president's case.
The scheme was thwarted because it couldn't obtain the backing of the military leaders. His successor was inaugurated without problem on 1 January 2023.
But a seven days after, on 8 January, thousands of Bolsonaro supporters stormed and vandalised public facilities in the national capital, Brazil's capital.
The law enforcement took action and around approximately 1,500 persons were arrested.
The judges found that the demonstrators had been provoked by Bolsonaro whose strategy, they said, was for the national armed forces to take action, bring back stability and reinstate his authority.
At the time, Bolsonaro's lawyers called the 27 years and three months sentence extremely harsh.
He was also banned from seeking elected position until twenty-sixty - eight years later after the completion of his term.
The one-time head of state called the court case a political persecution and said it was designed to prevent him running in the 2026 national vote.
