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The former Brazilian leader has been arrested after authorities determined he posed a serious risk of fleeing while under domestic detention.

The ex-president was sentenced of plotting a armed takeover in last fall and sentenced more than 27 years in jail, but he remained under home detention pending legal challenges.

Top Judicial Official Alexandre de Moraes said the decision to arrest the elderly politician was a precautionary step after recent developments emerged.

This involved trying to remove his electronic bracelet and a invitation to a demonstration that could "allow for a chance to flee".

Judicial Records Show Flight Fears

In a paperwork permitting the custody, the judge said data from the facility tracking the former president's confinement suggested the ex-president's aim to disable the tracking monitor to guarantee victory in his flight.

This, it said, would be assisted by the confusion caused by the protest called by his child.

His offspring, his son Flávio, who holds office as a congressional representative, called for a assembly of his followers near Bolsonaro's home to take place on Saturday evening.

The senator wrote on social media on Friday: "Are you going to fight for your homeland, or see it all from your phone there on your couch? I invite you to fight with us."

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

Diplomatic Refuge Fears

Part of the magistrate's determination was the possibility of his "relocation to foreign missions near the home, considering that the probes revealed a history of organizing to seek refuge through a diplomatic representation", a announcement said.

The court filing emphasizes that the American diplomatic mission in the capital, Brazil's capital, is located around 13km from Bolsonaro's home.

Worldwide Consequences

The former president's legal troubles have provoked anger from fellow right-wing populist US President President Trump, leading him to enact a 50% tariff on Brazilian product imports.

Bolsonaro is being kept in a national police facility in the capital and will have a detention review on the next day.

Recent Judicial Appeals

It was only on the previous day that the his legal team asked the Top Court to allow him to fulfill his full incarceration period under home confinement, with digital surveillance.

They also asked that Bolsonaro be allowed to leave his home for medical care, saying he required ongoing care for pulmonary infections and other health problems.

Details of Guilty Verdict

He was convicted of leading a plot aimed at keeping him in power after he failed to win the presidential race to his left-wing rival, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.

High Court judges said that he had knowledge of a plot which included plans to assassinate Lula and his running partner, Geraldo Alckmin, and to arrest and execute the presiding judge - the Supreme Court justice who has been managing the former president's case.

The conspiracy was stopped because it couldn't obtain the endorsement of the armed forces officials. His successor was sworn in without issue on January 1st, 2023.

But a following week, on January 8th, thousands of his followers attacked and damaged public facilities in the capital, Brasília.

The security forces intervened and around 1,500 people were arrested.

The justices found that the protesters had been provoked by the former president whose strategy, they said, was for the national armed forces to step in, restore order and reinstate his authority.

At the period, his attorneys called the 27 years and three months sentence unreasonably severe".

He was also banned from campaigning for office until the year 2060 - eight years after the completion of his term.

The former president called the trial a political persecution and said it was designed to prevent him running in the 2026 national vote.