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The former Brazilian leader has been taken into custody after authorities concluded he posed a serious risk of fleeing while under domestic detention.

The one-time leader was sentenced of plotting a military coup in September and given more than 27 years in prison, but he was staying under house arrest pending legal challenges.

Top Judicial Official Justice Moraes said the move to detain the 70-year-old politician was a safety action after "new facts" were revealed.

This encompassed trying to remove his electronic bracelet and a call for a supporters' gathering that could enable a chance to flee".

Judicial Records Show Escape Risks

In a document approving the custody, the judge said intelligence from the facility tracking the former president's confinement suggested the former leader's "intention to break the electronic ankle bracelet to guarantee victory in his flight.

This, it said, would be made easier by the confusion caused by the gathering called by his son.

His child, Flávio, who serves as a senator, called for a meeting of his followers near his father's house to take place on Saturday evening.

His son wrote on social media on the previous day: Will you battle for your nation, or observe everything from your smartphone there on your couch? I invite you to struggle with us."

He said the demonstration would be so followers could seek divine intervention for his physical condition and for the restoration of democratic rule in our land."

Embassy Asylum Concerns

Part of Justice Moraes's ruling was the chance of his "relocation to diplomatic missions near the residence, considering that the inquiries revealed a history of arranging to seek refuge through a diplomatic representation", a declaration said.

The judicial paperwork underscores that the United States embassy in the capital, the capital city, is located around 13km from Bolsonaro's home.

Worldwide Consequences

Bolsonaro's legal woes have provoked anger from fellow right-wing populist American leader Trump, leading him to enact a half-rate duty on goods coming from Brazil.

He is being kept in a Federal Police station in Brasilia and will experience a custody hearing on the next day.

Latest Court Petitions

It was only on Friday that the his legal team asked the High Court to authorize him to fulfill his full incarceration period under house arrest, with tracking devices.

They also requested that he be authorized to leave his home for medical treatment, saying he needed regular treatment for respiratory ailments and other health problems.

Background on Conviction

Bolsonaro was convicted of orchestrating a scheme aimed at keeping him in power after he failed to win the presidential race to his left-wing rival, Lula.

High Court judges said that he was aware of a plot which involved plans to murder his opponent and his running partner, his vice-presidential candidate, and to imprison and murder Justice Moraes - the Supreme Court justice who has been managing Bolsonaro's trial.

The scheme was stopped because it couldn't obtain the backing of the army and air force commanders. The current president was took office without incident on the first day of 2023.

But a week later, on 8 January, many Bolsonaro supporters attacked and damaged government buildings in the national capital, the capital city.

The police took action and around fifteen hundred individuals were detained.

The magistrates found that the protesters had been encouraged by him whose strategy, they said, was for the Brazilian military to step in, restore order and bring him back to power.

At the moment, the legal team called the decades-long sentence extremely harsh.

He was also prohibited from campaigning for office until the year 2060 - a decade minus two years after the end of his sentence.

The ex-leader called the trial a political persecution and said it was designed to prevent him participating in the 2026 presidential election.