Bolsonaro detained after being considered a risk of fleeing
The former Brazilian leader has been detained after authorities concluded he posed a serious risk of fleeing while under home confinement.
The one-time leader was found guilty of plotting a armed takeover in the ninth month and sentenced more than 27 years in jail, but he continued under home detention pending legal challenges.
Top Judicial Official Alexandre de Moraes said the move to detain the elderly politician was a safety action after recent developments came to light.
This involved trying to remove his tracking device and a summons to a supporters' gathering that could enable a possible escape.
Judicial Records Show Escape Risks
In a paperwork permitting the detention, Justice Moraes said data from the facility tracking his home detention suggested the ex-president's "intention to break the electronic ankle bracelet to secure accomplishment in his escape.
This, it said, would be made easier by the disorder caused by the gathering called by his child.
His child, his son Flávio, who works as a senator, called for a assembly of his followers near Bolsonaro's home to take place on Saturday evening.
The senator wrote on social media on last Friday: "Are you going to fight for your nation, or observe everything from your mobile device there on your sofa? I urge you to fight with us."
He said the vigil would be so followers could offer prayers for his physical condition and for the reestablishment of democratic governance in our nation."
Embassy Asylum Concerns
Part of the magistrate's ruling was the possibility of the former president's move to foreign missions near the residence, considering that the investigations revealed a record of arranging to request asylum through a consular facility", a statement said.
The court filing highlights that the American diplomatic mission in the capital, the capital city, is located around 8 miles from the former president's residence.
Worldwide Consequences
The former president's legal troubles have drawn the ire of fellow right-wing populist US President Trump, causing him to implement a half-rate duty on Brazilian product imports.
Bolsonaro is being kept in a national police facility in the capital and will experience a imprisonment assessment on the next day.
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 home confinement, with digital surveillance.
They also petitioned that he be authorized to depart his residence for healthcare, saying he required frequent medical attention for lung conditions and other ailments.
Details of Guilty Verdict
He was found guilty of orchestrating a plot aimed at retaining his authority after he lost the presidential race to his ideological adversary, Lula.
Top judicial officials said that he knew of a plot which included plans to assassinate his opponent and his VP candidate, Alckmin, and to arrest and execute Alexandre de Moraes - the High Court judge who has been presiding over the former president's case.
The scheme was thwarted because it failed to get the backing of the armed forces officials. Lula was inaugurated without issue on 1 January 2023.
But a week later, on January 8th, numerous his backers attacked and damaged official structures in the federal district, Brasília.
The security forces stepped in and around 1,500 people were taken into custody.
The justices found that the rioters had been provoked by the former president whose plan, they said, was for the Brazilian military to step in, bring back stability and return him to office.
At the moment, his attorneys called the decades-long sentence unreasonably severe".
He was also banned from seeking elected position until twenty-sixty - eight years after the end of his sentence.
The one-time head of state called the court case a political persecution and said it was intended to stop him participating in the 2026 presidential election.