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Jair Bolsonaro has been arrested after authorities concluded he posed a serious risk of fleeing while under home confinement.

The one-time leader was found guilty of planning a government overthrow in last fall and handed more than a 27-year term in incarceration, but he continued under confinement pending court reviews.

Brazilian Supreme Court Justice the presiding justice said the move to detain the septuagenarian politician was a precautionary step after fresh information came to light.

This included seeking to disable his tracking device and a summons to a public vigil that could enable a possible escape.

Judicial Records Show Escape Risks

In a paperwork permitting the custody, the magistrate said information from the unit overseeing his home detention suggested the ex-president's "intention to break the tracking monitor to guarantee victory in his escape.

This, it said, would be "facilitated by the confusion caused by the demonstration called by his offspring.

His offspring, Flávio, who serves as a congressional representative, called for a meeting of his backers near the former president's residence to take place on Saturday night.

Flávio Bolsonaro wrote on digital networks on the previous day: Do you plan to struggle for your homeland, or observe everything from your smartphone there on your settee? I urge you to struggle with us."

He said the gathering would be so followers could seek divine intervention for his health and for the reestablishment of democratic governance in our nation."

Foreign Shelter Risks

Part of the judge's decision was the potential of his transfer to foreign missions near the home, considering that the investigations revealed a background of arranging to seek refuge through a embassy office", a announcement said.

The legal document highlights that the American diplomatic mission in the capital, Brasilia, is positioned around 13km from Bolsonaro's home.

International Reactions

Bolsonaro's legal woes have provoked anger from fellow conservative nationalist US President Trump, leading him to enact a half-rate duty on Brazilian product imports.

Bolsonaro is being detained in a Federal Police station in Brasilia and will have a detention review on Sunday.

Recent Judicial Appeals

It was only on last Friday that the former president's lawyers asked the High Court to authorize him to complete his entire prison term under domestic detention, with tracking devices.

They also requested that he be allowed to depart his residence for healthcare, saying he needed regular treatment for pulmonary infections and other ailments.

Context of Sentencing

The former president was determined responsible of leading a conspiracy aimed at maintaining his control after he was defeated in the national vote to his left-wing rival, Lula.

High Court judges said that he was aware of a plot which included plans to assassinate the current president and his running partner, Geraldo Alckmin, and to detain and kill the presiding judge - the Supreme Court justice who has been managing the former president's case.

The plot was thwarted because it failed to get the backing of the armed forces officials. Lula was took office without problem on January 1st, 2023.

But a week later, on January 8th, many his followers stormed and vandalised public facilities in the national capital, the capital city.

The security forces took action and around fifteen hundred individuals were detained.

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

At the time, his attorneys called the decades-long sentence unreasonably severe".

He was also barred from running for public office until twenty-sixty - eight years later after the end of his sentence.

The ex-leader called the legal proceedings a "witch hunt and said it was intended to stop him competing in the 2026 presidential election.