Jair Bolsonaro arrested after being deemed a flight risk

Bolsonaro has been detained after authorities determined he posed a serious risk of fleeing while under home confinement.

The ex-president was sentenced of plotting a armed takeover in September and handed more than 27 years in jail, but he was staying under home detention pending court reviews.

High Court Judge Alexandre de Moraes said the move to detain the septuagenarian politician was a precautionary step after fresh information emerged.

This involved attempting to break his tracking device and a invitation to a demonstration that could enable a possible escape.

Judicial Records Show Escape Risks

In a filing authorising the detention, Justice Moraes said data from the unit overseeing his home detention suggested the one-time head of state's aim to disable the surveillance device to ensure success in his escape.

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

His son, Flávio, who holds office as a legislator, called for a meeting of his supporters near the former president's residence to take place on Saturday night.

The senator wrote on online platforms on the previous day: "Are you going to fight for your nation, or watch it all from your mobile device there on your couch? I call on you to battle with us."

He said the demonstration would be so backers could "pray for his physical condition and for the return of democracy in our land."

Embassy Asylum Concerns

Part of the judge's decision was the possibility of his transfer to foreign missions near the residence, considering that the probes revealed a background of organizing to request asylum through a diplomatic representation", a statement said.

The court filing highlights that the United States embassy in the federal district, Brazil's capital, is situated around approximately 13 kilometers from Bolsonaro's home.

Worldwide Consequences

Bolsonaro's legal woes have provoked anger from fellow populist conservative American leader Donald Trump, causing him to enact a fifty percent tax on Brazilian product imports.

The former president is being held in a Federal Police station in Brazil's capital city and will have a imprisonment assessment on the next day.

Recent Legal Requests

It was only on the previous day that the ex-leader's attorneys asked the High Court to authorize him to serve his whole jail sentence under domestic detention, with tracking devices.

They also petitioned that Bolsonaro be authorized to depart his residence for healthcare, saying he needed ongoing care for lung conditions and other illnesses.

Details of Guilty Verdict

The former president was found guilty of heading a plot aimed at maintaining his control after he lost the national vote to his political opponent, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.

Supreme Court justices said that he had knowledge of a plan which involved plans to kill the current president and his vice-presidential running mate, his vice-presidential candidate, and to imprison and murder Alexandre de Moraes - the High Court judge who has been managing Bolsonaro's trial.

The scheme was stopped because it couldn't obtain the backing of the armed forces officials. His successor was took office without problem on the first day of 2023.

But a week later, on January 8th, thousands of Bolsonaro supporters attacked and damaged public facilities in the capital, Brasília.

The law enforcement stepped in and around approximately 1,500 persons were arrested.

The magistrates found that the demonstrators had been provoked by Bolsonaro whose scheme, they said, was for the national armed forces to take action, reestablish control and reinstate his authority.

At the period, Bolsonaro's lawyers called the 27 years and three months sentence extremely harsh.

He was also banned from seeking elected position until 2060 - eight years after the completion of his term.

The one-time head of state called the trial a targeted investigation" and said it was intended to stop him participating in the 2026 national vote.