Jair Bolsonaro has been detained after authorities concluded he posed a definite escape threat while under house arrest.
The former head of state was found guilty of orchestrating a government overthrow in the ninth month and handed more than a 27-year term in incarceration, but he remained under home detention pending appeals.
Brazilian Supreme Court Justice Justice Moraes said the decision to arrest the septuagenarian politician was a preventative measure after "new facts" emerged.
This included trying to remove his ankle monitor and a call for a supporters' gathering that could facilitate a chance to flee".
Court Filing Details Flight Fears
In a filing authorising the custody, the judge said information from the unit overseeing the former president's confinement suggested the one-time head of state's "intention to break the surveillance device to ensure success in his flight.
This, it said, would be made easier by the chaos caused by the protest called by his son.
His son, Flávio Bolsonaro, who serves as a legislator, called for a meeting of his supporters near Bolsonaro's home to take place on the weekend.
His son wrote on online platforms on last Friday: "Are you going to fight for your country, or watch it all from your mobile device there on your settee? I call on you to battle with us."
He said the gathering would be so supporters could offer prayers for his well-being and for the restoration of democratic rule in our country."
Embassy Asylum Concerns
Part of the magistrate's determination was the chance of his "relocation to foreign missions near the home, considering that the investigations revealed a history of planning to ask for protection through a embassy office", a announcement said.
The judicial paperwork highlights that the American diplomatic mission in the federal district, the capital city, is situated around 13km from the former president's residence.
Worldwide Consequences
Bolsonaro's legal woes have generated frustration from fellow right-wing populist American leader Donald Trump, leading him to enact a half-rate duty on imports of Brazilian goods.
The former president is being kept in a national police facility in the capital and will experience a custody hearing on the following day.
Latest Court Petitions
It was only on the previous day that the ex-leader's attorneys asked the Top Court to permit him to complete his entire prison term under home confinement, with tracking devices.
They also petitioned that he be allowed to exit his dwelling for medical treatment, saying he demanded regular treatment for respiratory ailments and other illnesses.
Context of Sentencing
The former president was found guilty of leading a scheme aimed at maintaining his control after he failed to win the 2022 election to his left-wing rival, President Lula.
Top judicial officials said that he knew of a plot which encompassed plans to kill his opponent and his VP candidate, Alckmin, and to imprison and murder the presiding judge - the top judicial official who has been presiding over his judicial proceedings.
The conspiracy was prevented because it failed to get the endorsement of the army and air force commanders. Lula was sworn in without issue on the first day of 2023.
But a week later, on the eighth of January, thousands of his followers attacked and damaged official structures in the capital, Brasília.
The security forces stepped in and around 1,500 people were arrested.
The magistrates found that the demonstrators had been encouraged by the former president whose strategy, they said, was for the Brazilian military to step in, bring back stability and reinstate his authority.
At the time, his attorneys called the decades-long sentence "absurdly excessive.
He was also prohibited from campaigning for office until twenty-sixty - eight years later after the conclusion of his imprisonment.
The ex-leader called the court case a targeted investigation" and said it was aimed at blocking him competing in the next presidential race.
