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Jair Bolsonaro has been arrested after authorities concluded he posed a definite escape threat while under home confinement.

The one-time leader was found guilty of plotting a armed takeover in September and sentenced more than a 27-year term in incarceration, but he remained under home detention pending court reviews.

Brazilian Supreme Court Justice Justice Moraes said the move to detain the elderly politician was a preventative measure after recent developments were revealed.

This included trying to remove his electronic bracelet and a summons to a supporters' gathering that could facilitate a potential flight.

Legal Document Reveals Flight Fears

In a document approving the detention, Justice Moraes said information from the centre monitoring the former president's confinement suggested the one-time head of state's aim to disable the tracking monitor to secure accomplishment in his escape.

This, it said, would be assisted by the chaos caused by the gathering called by his offspring.

His child, Flávio Bolsonaro, who holds office as a senator, called for a assembly of his followers near his father's house to take place on the weekend.

His son wrote on social media on last Friday: Will you battle for your country, or watch it all from your smartphone there on your settee? I invite you to fight with us."

He said the gathering would be so backers could "pray for his well-being and for the restoration of democratic rule in our land."

Foreign Shelter Risks

Part of the magistrate's determination was the possibility of his "relocation to foreign missions near the residence, considering that the inquiries revealed a background of arranging to request asylum through a diplomatic representation", a announcement said.

The judicial paperwork emphasizes that the US embassy in the capital, Brazil's capital, is positioned around 13km from his dwelling.

Global Responses

Bolsonaro's legal woes have drawn the ire of fellow populist conservative American leader Trump, leading him to implement a half-rate duty on Brazilian product imports.

Bolsonaro is being detained in a federal law enforcement building in Brazil's capital city and will have a custody hearing on Sunday.

Latest Court Petitions

It was only on the previous day that the former president's lawyers asked the Top Court to allow him to serve his whole jail sentence under home confinement, with digital surveillance.

They also asked that he be permitted to depart his residence for healthcare, saying he required regular treatment for lung conditions and other illnesses.

Background on Conviction

He was convicted of orchestrating a plot aimed at maintaining his control after he was defeated in the 2022 election to his ideological adversary, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.

Supreme Court justices said that he had knowledge of a plan which involved plans to murder his opponent and his VP candidate, his vice-presidential candidate, and to imprison and murder the presiding judge - the top judicial official who has been presiding over the former president's case.

The conspiracy was stopped because it couldn't obtain the endorsement of the military leaders. Lula was inaugurated without issue on January 1st, 2023.

But a seven days after, on 8 January, many his followers invaded and destroyed government buildings in the national capital, Brazil's capital.

The law enforcement intervened and around 1,500 people were detained.

The magistrates found that the protesters had been provoked by the former president whose strategy, they said, was for the Brazilian military to step in, reestablish control and bring him back to power.

At the period, the legal team called the over 27-year sentence "absurdly excessive.

He was also prohibited from seeking elected position until the year 2060 - eight years later after the conclusion of his imprisonment.

The ex-leader called the legal proceedings a targeted investigation" and said it was aimed at blocking him running in the 2026 national vote.