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Bolsonaro has been detained after authorities found he posed a concrete flight risk while under domestic detention.

The former head of state was convicted of planning a government overthrow in last fall and handed more than a 27-year term in jail, but he continued under house arrest pending court reviews.

Top Judicial Official Justice Moraes said the move to detain the septuagenarian politician was a precautionary step after recent developments emerged.

This included seeking to disable his electronic bracelet and a call for a supporters' gathering that could enable a possible escape.

Legal Document Reveals Escape Concerns

In a filing authorising the arrest, Justice Moraes said intelligence from the facility tracking his home detention suggested the ex-president's "intention to break the electronic ankle bracelet to guarantee victory in his escape.

This, it said, would be assisted by the chaos caused by the gathering called by his child.

His son, his son Flávio, who serves as a congressional representative, called for a assembly of his followers near Bolsonaro's home to take place on the weekend.

The senator wrote on online platforms on last Friday: Will you battle for your homeland, or see it all from your mobile device there on your sofa? I call on you to battle with us."

He said the gathering would be so followers could "pray for his well-being and for the reestablishment of democratic governance in our land."

Foreign Shelter Risks

Part of the judge's determination was the potential of the former president's "relocation to diplomatic missions near the residence, considering that the probes revealed a background of planning to request asylum through a diplomatic representation", a declaration said.

The legal document underscores that the United States embassy in the national capital, the capital city, is situated around 13km from Bolsonaro's home.

International Reactions

Bolsonaro's legal woes have drawn the ire of fellow conservative nationalist United States President Donald Trump, causing him to impose a half-rate duty on Brazilian product imports.

The former president is being held in a Federal Police station in the capital and will have a imprisonment assessment on the next day.

Recent Legal Requests

It was only on last Friday that the ex-leader's attorneys asked the High Court to allow him to serve his whole jail sentence under house arrest, with digital surveillance.

They also petitioned that the former president be permitted to depart his residence for medical treatment, saying he demanded frequent medical attention for pulmonary infections and other ailments.

Details of Guilty Verdict

The former president was found guilty of orchestrating a plot aimed at keeping him in power after he lost the national vote to his left-wing rival, President Lula.

High Court judges said that he knew of a plan which included plans to murder his opponent and his vice-presidential running mate, Geraldo Alckmin, and to arrest and execute Alexandre de Moraes - the top judicial official who has been managing Bolsonaro's trial.

The conspiracy was thwarted because it failed to get the support of the army and air force commanders. The current president was took office without problem on January 1st, 2023.

But a week later, on the eighth of January, numerous Bolsonaro supporters stormed and vandalised public facilities in the capital, Brasília.

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

The justices found that the rioters had been incited by Bolsonaro whose plan, they said, was for the national armed forces to intervene, restore order and bring him back to power.

At the moment, the legal team called the over 27-year sentence unreasonably severe".

He was also banned from campaigning for office until twenty-sixty - eight years later 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.