Jair Bolsonaro has been arrested after authorities found he posed a concrete flight risk while under home confinement.
The former head of state was found guilty of planning a armed takeover in last fall and sentenced more than a 27-year term in incarceration, but he continued under confinement pending court reviews.
High Court Judge the presiding justice said the decision to arrest the elderly politician was a preventative measure after "new facts" were revealed.
This involved trying to remove his tracking device and a summons to a demonstration that could enable a possible escape.
Judicial Records Show Escape Risks
In a paperwork permitting the arrest, the judge said information from the unit overseeing Bolsonaro's house arrest suggested the former leader's plan to remove the surveillance device to guarantee victory in his escape.
This, it said, would be assisted by the chaos caused by the protest called by his offspring.
His son, Flávio Bolsonaro, who works as a congressional representative, called for a meeting of his followers near the former president's residence to take place on Saturday night.
His son wrote on social media on Friday: Do you plan to struggle for your nation, or observe everything from your smartphone there on your settee? I invite you to fight with us."
He said the gathering would be so supporters could seek divine intervention for his physical condition and for the reestablishment of democratic governance in our nation."
Diplomatic Refuge Fears
Part of the judge's decision was the possibility of Bolsonaro's "relocation to diplomatic missions near the home, considering that the inquiries revealed a record of planning to seek refuge through a consular facility", a declaration said.
The judicial paperwork highlights that the American diplomatic mission in the capital, the capital city, is located around approximately 13 kilometers from his dwelling.
Worldwide Consequences
Bolsonaro's legal woes have provoked anger from fellow right-wing populist US President President Trump, prompting him to implement a fifty percent tax on goods coming from Brazil.
The former president is being kept in a federal law enforcement building in the capital and will experience a custody hearing on the next day.
Latest Court Petitions
It was only on last Friday that the his legal team asked the Top Court to allow him to complete his entire prison term under home confinement, with electronic monitoring.
They also requested that Bolsonaro be permitted to leave his home for healthcare, saying he demanded ongoing care for pulmonary infections and other illnesses.
Background on Conviction
He was determined responsible of orchestrating a plot aimed at keeping him in power after he was defeated in the national vote to his left-wing rival, Lula.
Supreme Court justices said that he had knowledge of a plot which involved plans to assassinate the current president and his running partner, Alckmin, and to imprison and murder Justice Moraes - the Supreme Court justice who has been overseeing his judicial proceedings.
The plot was prevented because it didn't receive the backing of the army and air force commanders. Lula was sworn in without problem on January 1st, 2023.
But a seven days after, on January 8th, many Bolsonaro supporters invaded and destroyed official structures in the federal district, Brazil's capital.
The security forces intervened and around 1,500 people were detained.
The justices found that the rioters had been encouraged by him whose strategy, they said, was for the national armed forces to step in, bring back stability and reinstate his authority.
At the moment, Bolsonaro's lawyers called the decades-long sentence "absurdly excessive.
He was also banned from running for public office until the year 2060 - eight years after the end of his sentence.
The former president called the court case a political persecution and said it was designed to prevent him running in the 2026 national vote.
