Jair Bolsonaro detained after being deemed a escape threat
The former Brazilian leader has been detained after authorities determined he posed a concrete flight risk while under house arrest.
The ex-president was sentenced of orchestrating a armed takeover in September and given more than a 27-year term in incarceration, but he was staying under home detention pending legal challenges.
High Court Judge Alexandre de Moraes said the action to imprison the elderly politician was a precautionary step after "new facts" were revealed.
This involved trying to remove his ankle monitor and a invitation to a public vigil that could facilitate a chance to flee".
Legal Document Reveals Flight Fears
In a paperwork permitting the arrest, the judge said data from the facility tracking Bolsonaro's house arrest suggested the one-time head of state's plan to remove the surveillance device to ensure success in his flight.
This, it said, would be assisted by the disorder caused by the demonstration called by his son.
His child, his son Flávio, who works as a congressional representative, called for a assembly of his backers near the former president's residence to take place on Saturday night.
The senator wrote on digital networks on last Friday: "Are you going to fight for your nation, or see it all from your smartphone there on your sofa? I invite you to fight with us."
He said the demonstration would be so supporters could "pray for his physical condition and for the return of democracy in our nation."
Diplomatic Refuge Fears
Part of the magistrate's determination was the possibility of the former president's "relocation to diplomatic missions near the residence, considering that the probes revealed a history of arranging to ask for protection through a embassy office", a declaration said.
The judicial paperwork emphasizes that the United States embassy in the capital, Brazil's capital, is situated around approximately 13 kilometers from Bolsonaro's home.
Worldwide Consequences
Bolsonaro's legal woes have drawn the ire of fellow conservative nationalist American leader Trump, leading him to impose a half-rate duty on imports of Brazilian goods.
The former president is being detained in a Federal Police station in the capital and will undergo a detention review on Sunday.
Recent Judicial Appeals
It was only on last Friday that the ex-leader's attorneys asked the Supreme Court to allow him to serve his whole jail sentence under house arrest, with tracking devices.
They also petitioned that Bolsonaro be authorized to depart his residence for medical care, saying he demanded frequent medical attention for lung conditions and other illnesses.
Context of Sentencing
Bolsonaro was convicted of orchestrating a plot aimed at maintaining his control after he was defeated in the national vote to his left-wing rival, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.
High Court judges said that he was aware of a plan which included plans to murder Lula and his vice-presidential running mate, Alckmin, and to arrest and execute Justice Moraes - the Supreme Court justice who has been presiding over Bolsonaro's trial.
The plot was prevented because it failed to get the endorsement of the military leaders. Lula was sworn in without incident on 1 January 2023.
But a week later, on the eighth of January, many Bolsonaro supporters attacked and damaged government buildings in the national capital, Brasília.
The law enforcement stepped in and around fifteen hundred individuals were detained.
The magistrates found that the protesters had been encouraged by Bolsonaro whose scheme, they said, was for the Brazilian military to step in, reestablish control and reinstate his authority.
At the period, the legal team called the 27 years and three months sentence "absurdly excessive.
He was also barred from running for public office until 2060 - eight years after the conclusion of his imprisonment.
The former president called the court case a political persecution and said it was aimed at blocking him competing in the 2026 presidential election.