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The former Brazilian leader has been arrested after authorities found he posed a definite escape threat while under house arrest.

The ex-president was found guilty of planning a armed takeover in September and sentenced more than over two decades in jail, but he continued under house arrest pending appeals.

High Court Judge Alexandre de Moraes said the action to imprison the elderly politician was a precautionary step after fresh information emerged.

This involved seeking to disable his tracking device and a summons to a supporters' gathering that could enable a possible escape.

Court Filing Details Escape Risks

In a filing authorising the custody, the magistrate said information from the centre monitoring his home detention suggested the one-time head of state's aim to disable the surveillance device to secure accomplishment in his getaway".

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

His son, his son Flávio, who serves as a legislator, called for a gathering of his backers near Bolsonaro's home to take place on the weekend.

His son wrote on social media on Friday: Do you plan to struggle for your nation, or watch it all from your smartphone there on your settee? I call on you to struggle with us."

He said the vigil would be so followers could offer prayers for his health and for the reestablishment of democratic governance in our land."

Embassy Asylum Concerns

Part of the judge's ruling was the potential of Bolsonaro's move to diplomatic missions near the residence, considering that the inquiries revealed a history of organizing to ask for protection through a consular facility", a announcement said.

The legal document emphasizes that the United States embassy in the federal district, Brazil's capital, is positioned around approximately 13 kilometers from the former president's residence.

Worldwide Consequences

His judicial problems have drawn the ire of fellow right-wing populist US President Donald Trump, causing him to enact a 50% tariff on imports of Brazilian goods.

The former president is being held in a national police facility in Brazil's capital city and will undergo a detention review on Sunday.

Recent Legal Requests

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

They also asked that Bolsonaro be authorized to depart his residence for medical care, saying he demanded frequent medical attention for lung conditions and other ailments.

Background on Conviction

The former president was convicted of orchestrating a scheme aimed at retaining his authority after he was defeated in the 2022 election to his political opponent, Lula.

Supreme Court justices said that he knew of a scheme which encompassed plans to kill the current president and his VP candidate, Geraldo Alckmin, and to arrest and execute Justice Moraes - the High Court judge who has been overseeing the former president's case.

The plot was stopped because it didn't receive the endorsement of the armed forces officials. The current president was inaugurated without issue on 1 January 2023.

But a following week, on 8 January, thousands of Bolsonaro supporters stormed and vandalised public facilities in the national capital, the capital city.

The law enforcement took action and around fifteen hundred individuals were taken into custody.

The judges found that the rioters had been encouraged by the former president whose strategy, they said, was for the Brazilian military to take action, restore order and return him to office.

At the moment, his attorneys called the 27 years and three months sentence "absurdly excessive.

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

The ex-leader called the court case a targeted investigation" and said it was intended to stop him competing in the 2026 national vote.