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The former Brazilian leader has been taken into custody after authorities concluded he posed a definite escape threat while under domestic detention.

The former head of state was convicted of orchestrating a armed takeover in the ninth month and given more than 27 years in incarceration, but he remained under confinement pending legal challenges.

High Court Judge the presiding justice said the action to imprison the septuagenarian politician was a safety action after recent developments emerged.

This involved trying to remove his electronic bracelet and a summons to a supporters' gathering that could enable a chance to flee".

Court Filing Details Flight Fears

In a paperwork permitting the arrest, Justice Moraes said intelligence from the centre monitoring Bolsonaro's house arrest suggested the one-time head of state's "intention to break the electronic ankle bracelet to secure accomplishment in his getaway".

This, it said, would be "facilitated by the disorder caused by the demonstration called by his offspring.

His child, Flávio, who serves as a congressional representative, called for a gathering of his supporters near the former president's residence to take place on Saturday evening.

Flávio Bolsonaro wrote on digital networks on Friday: Do you plan to struggle for your nation, or watch it all from your phone there on your sofa? I call on you to fight with us."

He said the gathering would be so followers could seek divine intervention for his physical condition and for the reestablishment of democratic governance in our land."

Diplomatic Refuge Fears

Part of the magistrate's ruling was the chance of his transfer to foreign missions near the home, considering that the inquiries revealed a history of arranging to request asylum through a consular facility", a statement said.

The court filing highlights that the United States embassy in the national capital, Brasilia, is situated around 13km from the former president's residence.

Global Responses

The former president's legal troubles have generated frustration from fellow conservative nationalist US President President Trump, leading him to impose a 50% tariff on imports of Brazilian goods.

He is being kept in a federal law enforcement building in the capital and will have a custody hearing on Sunday.

Recent Judicial Appeals

It was only on Friday that the his legal team asked the Supreme Court to allow him to complete his entire prison term under house arrest, with electronic monitoring.

They also petitioned that Bolsonaro be allowed to exit his dwelling for healthcare, saying he required frequent medical attention for lung conditions and other ailments.

Context of Sentencing

He was convicted of heading a scheme aimed at keeping him in power after he failed to win the national vote to his ideological adversary, Lula.

Supreme Court justices said that he knew of a plan which included plans to assassinate the current president and his vice-presidential running mate, Alckmin, and to imprison and murder Alexandre de Moraes - the High Court judge who has been overseeing Bolsonaro's trial.

The conspiracy was thwarted because it couldn't obtain the support of the military leaders. Lula was sworn in without issue on 1 January 2023.

But a seven days after, on 8 January, numerous his backers attacked and damaged government buildings in the capital, Brasília.

The law enforcement took action and around fifteen hundred individuals were arrested.

The magistrates found that the demonstrators had been incited by Bolsonaro whose scheme, they said, was for the Brazilian military to step in, bring back stability and return him to office.

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

He was also barred from running for public office until twenty-sixty - a decade minus two years after the end of his sentence.

The one-time head of state called the trial a "witch hunt and said it was aimed at blocking him running in the 2026 presidential election.