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

The ex-president was convicted of plotting a armed takeover in September and given more than over two decades in incarceration, but he continued under confinement pending legal challenges.

Top Judicial Official Justice Moraes said the decision to arrest the septuagenarian politician was a preventative measure after fresh information emerged.

This involved trying to remove his tracking device and a invitation to a demonstration that could "allow for a possible escape.

Court Filing Details Escape Risks

In a document approving the custody, the magistrate said data from the unit overseeing the former president's confinement suggested the former leader's aim to disable the surveillance device to ensure success in his escape.

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

His offspring, Flávio Bolsonaro, who works as a congressional representative, called for a assembly of his followers near his father's house to take place on the weekend.

His son wrote on social media on last Friday: "Are you going to fight for your country, or observe everything from your phone there on your couch? I call on you to struggle with us."

He said the demonstration would be so backers could seek divine intervention for his physical condition and for the return of democracy in our nation."

Foreign Shelter Risks

Part of the judge's ruling was the chance of Bolsonaro's "relocation to embassies near the residence, considering that the probes revealed a history of arranging to request asylum through a diplomatic representation", a announcement said.

The legal document highlights that the US embassy in the national capital, the capital city, is positioned around 8 miles from his dwelling.

International Reactions

The former president's legal troubles have generated frustration from fellow right-wing populist American leader Trump, prompting him to enact a fifty percent tax on Brazilian product imports.

He is being detained in a Federal Police station in Brazil's capital city and will experience a detention review on Sunday.

Recent Judicial Appeals

It was only on the previous day that the his legal team asked the Top Court to authorize him to complete his entire prison term under home confinement, with digital surveillance.

They also requested that Bolsonaro be permitted to exit his dwelling for medical treatment, saying he needed regular treatment for pulmonary infections and other health problems.

Details of Guilty Verdict

Bolsonaro was found guilty of orchestrating a conspiracy aimed at retaining his authority after he was defeated in the presidential race to his political opponent, Lula.

Top judicial officials said that he knew of a scheme which encompassed plans to murder Lula and his VP candidate, his vice-presidential candidate, and to detain and kill Alexandre de Moraes - the Supreme Court justice who has been managing Bolsonaro's trial.

The plot was prevented because it didn't receive the support of the armed forces officials. The current president was took office without issue on 1 January 2023.

But a seven days after, on 8 January, many his followers invaded and destroyed official structures in the capital, Brazil's capital.

The law enforcement intervened and around 1,500 people were taken into custody.

The justices found that the protesters had been encouraged by him whose strategy, they said, was for the Brazilian military to intervene, reestablish control and bring him back to power.

At the period, his attorneys called the 27 years and three months sentence unreasonably severe".

He was also prohibited from campaigning for office until twenty-sixty - a decade minus two years after the end of his sentence.

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