Jair Bolsonaro has been detained after authorities determined he posed a concrete flight risk while under house arrest.
The former head of state was sentenced of plotting a government overthrow in last fall and sentenced more than over two decades in jail, but he continued under home detention pending court reviews.
Brazilian Supreme Court Justice the presiding justice said the action to imprison the 70-year-old politician was a precautionary step after fresh information came to light.
This involved seeking to disable his electronic bracelet and a call for a supporters' gathering that could "allow for a chance to flee".
Court Filing Details Escape Concerns
In a paperwork permitting the custody, the judge said intelligence from the unit overseeing his home detention suggested the one-time head of state's plan to remove the electronic ankle bracelet to guarantee victory in his flight.
This, it said, would be assisted by the confusion caused by the protest called by his offspring.
His child, Flávio Bolsonaro, who serves as a congressional representative, called for a gathering of his followers near the former president's residence to take place on Saturday evening.
Flávio Bolsonaro wrote on digital networks on last Friday: Do you plan to struggle for your country, or watch it all from your smartphone there on your settee? I invite you to struggle with us."
He said the vigil would be so backers could "pray for his health and for the restoration of democratic rule in our country."
Diplomatic Refuge Fears
Part of the magistrate's decision was the potential of his move to diplomatic missions near the home, considering that the probes revealed a history of arranging to seek refuge through a embassy office", a statement said.
The legal document emphasizes that the United States embassy in the capital, Brazil's capital, is situated around approximately 13 kilometers from the former president's residence.
International Reactions
The former president's legal troubles have provoked anger from fellow right-wing populist US President Trump, prompting him to implement a half-rate duty on Brazilian product imports.
Bolsonaro is being held in a national police facility in Brasilia and will undergo a custody hearing on Sunday.
Recent Legal Requests
It was only on Friday that the his legal team asked the Supreme Court to authorize him to serve his whole jail sentence under house arrest, with electronic monitoring.
They also petitioned that he be permitted to depart his residence for medical care, saying he needed frequent medical attention for respiratory ailments and other illnesses.
Details of Guilty Verdict
The former president was determined responsible of orchestrating a plot aimed at maintaining his control after he lost the presidential race to his ideological adversary, Lula.
High Court judges said that he knew of a scheme which encompassed plans to assassinate his opponent and his vice-presidential running mate, Geraldo Alckmin, and to arrest and execute the presiding judge - the High Court judge who has been presiding over his judicial proceedings.
The plot was stopped because it couldn't obtain the backing of the army and air force commanders. Lula was sworn in without incident on 1 January 2023.
But a seven days after, on January 8th, numerous his backers invaded and destroyed public facilities in the national capital, Brasília.
The security forces stepped in and around 1,500 people were detained.
The magistrates found that the demonstrators had been provoked by him whose plan, they said, was for the Brazilian military to take action, bring back stability and reinstate his authority.
At the time, his attorneys called the 27 years and three months sentence extremely harsh.
He was also banned from campaigning for office until twenty-sixty - 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 national vote.
