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

The former head of state was convicted of planning a military coup in the ninth month and sentenced more than 27 years in prison, but he remained under house arrest pending legal challenges.

High Court Judge Alexandre de Moraes said the move to detain the 70-year-old politician was a safety action after "new facts" emerged.

This included seeking to disable his tracking device and a invitation to a public vigil that could "allow for a possible escape.

Legal Document Reveals Escape Risks

In a filing authorising the custody, Justice Moraes said data from the unit overseeing Bolsonaro's house arrest suggested the one-time head of state's "intention to break the tracking monitor to secure accomplishment in his flight.

This, it said, would be assisted by the confusion caused by the demonstration called by his son.

His child, Flávio Bolsonaro, who holds office as a legislator, called for a meeting of his followers near his father's house to take place on the weekend.

The senator wrote on digital networks on the previous day: Do you plan to struggle for your country, or watch it all from your mobile device there on your couch? I invite you to battle with us."

He said the demonstration would be so supporters could "pray for his health and for the reestablishment of democratic governance in our country."

Embassy Asylum Concerns

Part of the magistrate's decision was the chance of Bolsonaro's "relocation to embassies near the dwelling, considering that the inquiries revealed a record of arranging to request asylum through a embassy office", a statement said.

The judicial paperwork highlights that the American diplomatic mission in the capital, Brasilia, is located around approximately 13 kilometers from Bolsonaro's home.

Global Responses

Bolsonaro's legal woes have generated frustration from fellow conservative nationalist American leader Donald Trump, causing him to enact a 50% tariff on goods coming from Brazil.

The former president is being kept in a Federal Police station in the capital and will undergo a detention review on the next day.

Recent Judicial Appeals

It was only on last Friday that the former president's lawyers asked the Supreme Court to allow him to complete his entire prison term under house arrest, with digital surveillance.

They also requested that Bolsonaro be allowed to depart his residence for medical treatment, saying he needed frequent medical attention for respiratory ailments and other health problems.

Details of Guilty Verdict

Bolsonaro was convicted of leading a conspiracy aimed at keeping him in power after he failed to win the presidential race to his political opponent, Lula.

Supreme Court justices said that he knew of a plan which involved plans to kill his opponent and his vice-presidential running mate, his vice-presidential candidate, and to detain and kill Justice Moraes - the High Court judge who has been presiding over the former president's case.

The scheme was stopped because it couldn't obtain the endorsement of the military leaders. Lula was inaugurated without issue on January 1st, 2023.

But a seven days after, on 8 January, numerous his backers stormed and vandalised public facilities in the capital, Brasília.

The law enforcement stepped in and around fifteen hundred individuals were arrested.

The justices found that the demonstrators had been encouraged by Bolsonaro whose strategy, they said, was for the national armed forces to step in, bring back stability and reinstate his authority.

At the moment, his attorneys called the over 27-year sentence unreasonably severe".

He was also barred from campaigning for office until the year 2060 - a decade minus two years after the conclusion of his imprisonment.

The ex-leader called the court case a targeted investigation" and said it was designed to prevent him competing in the 2026 presidential election.