Bolsonaro detained after being declared a flight risk
The former Brazilian leader has been detained after authorities determined he posed a definite escape threat while under house arrest.
The ex-president was convicted of plotting a government overthrow in last fall and handed more than a 27-year term in jail, but he was staying under house arrest pending legal challenges.
Top Judicial Official the presiding justice said the decision to arrest the septuagenarian politician was a precautionary step after recent developments were revealed.
This encompassed seeking to disable his ankle monitor and a invitation to a public vigil that could enable a possible escape.
Judicial Records Show Escape Risks
In a filing authorising the custody, the magistrate said intelligence from the facility tracking his home detention suggested the ex-president's "intention to break the surveillance device to guarantee victory in his escape.
This, it said, would be "facilitated by the disorder caused by the demonstration called by his child.
His offspring, Flávio, who serves as a senator, called for a meeting of his backers near Bolsonaro's home to take place on the weekend.
The senator wrote on digital networks on Friday: Do you plan to struggle for your nation, or watch it all from your smartphone there on your couch? I call on you to struggle with us."
He said the demonstration would be so backers could seek divine intervention for his well-being and for the return of democracy in our land."
Diplomatic Refuge Fears
Part of Justice Moraes's determination was the chance of the former president's transfer to foreign missions near the dwelling, considering that the inquiries revealed a background of organizing to seek refuge through a diplomatic representation", a declaration said.
The court filing underscores that the US embassy in the national capital, Brasilia, is located around 8 miles from the former president's residence.
Worldwide Consequences
The former president's legal troubles have generated frustration from fellow conservative nationalist American leader Donald Trump, leading him to enact a 50% tariff on Brazilian product imports.
The former president is being kept in a federal law enforcement building in the capital and will undergo a custody hearing on Sunday.
Recent Judicial Appeals
It was only on last Friday that the his legal team asked the High Court to authorize him to serve his whole jail sentence under home confinement, with electronic monitoring.
They also petitioned that Bolsonaro be allowed to exit his dwelling for medical treatment, saying he required ongoing care for pulmonary infections and other illnesses.
Details of Guilty Verdict
Bolsonaro was determined responsible of heading a scheme aimed at keeping him in power after he failed to win the 2022 election to his political opponent, President Lula.
High Court judges said that he was aware of a plan which encompassed plans to assassinate his opponent and his VP candidate, his vice-presidential candidate, and to imprison and murder Alexandre de Moraes - the Supreme Court justice who has been presiding over Bolsonaro's trial.
The plot was prevented because it failed to get the endorsement of the armed forces officials. His successor was inaugurated without incident on 1 January 2023.
But a following week, on the eighth of January, thousands of his followers invaded and destroyed official structures in the national capital, Brazil's capital.
The police intervened and around 1,500 people were taken into custody.
The justices found that the rioters had been encouraged by the former president whose strategy, they said, was for the Brazilian military to step in, reestablish control and reinstate his authority.
At the moment, Bolsonaro's lawyers called the 27 years and three months sentence "absurdly excessive.
He was also barred from campaigning for office until twenty-sixty - eight years later after the end of his sentence.
The ex-leader called the legal proceedings a political persecution and said it was aimed at blocking him competing in the 2026 presidential election.