The former Brazilian president arrested after being considered a escape threat

The former Brazilian leader has been taken into custody after authorities found he posed a concrete flight risk while under house arrest.

The former head of state was found guilty of orchestrating a military coup in September and handed more than over two decades in jail, but he was staying under home detention pending legal challenges.

Brazilian Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes said the action to imprison the elderly politician was a safety action after recent developments emerged.

This encompassed seeking to disable his ankle monitor and a call for a demonstration that could facilitate a potential flight.

Legal Document Reveals Flight Fears

In a filing authorising the custody, Justice Moraes said information from the unit overseeing Bolsonaro's house arrest suggested the former leader's aim to disable the surveillance device to ensure success in his escape.

This, it said, would be "facilitated by the disorder caused by the gathering called by his child.

His offspring, his son Flávio, who serves as a legislator, called for a meeting of his followers near Bolsonaro's home to take place on the weekend.

Flávio Bolsonaro wrote on online platforms on last Friday: Do you plan to struggle for your country, or watch it all from your phone there on your sofa? I urge you to fight with us."

He said the gathering would be so supporters could seek divine intervention for his physical condition and for the restoration of democratic rule in our country."

Foreign Shelter Risks

Part of the magistrate's ruling was the chance of the former president's transfer to embassies near the dwelling, considering that the inquiries revealed a record of planning to seek refuge through a diplomatic representation", a declaration said.

The judicial paperwork emphasizes that the US embassy in the federal district, Brazil's capital, is positioned around approximately 13 kilometers from the former president's residence.

Global Responses

The former president's legal troubles have drawn the ire of fellow right-wing populist United States President President Trump, leading him to implement a half-rate duty on imports of Brazilian goods.

Bolsonaro is being held in a Federal Police station in Brazil's capital city and will undergo a detention review on the next day.

Latest Court Petitions

It was only on Friday that the former president's lawyers asked the Top Court to allow him to fulfill his full incarceration period under domestic detention, with digital surveillance.

They also asked that Bolsonaro be allowed to depart his residence for healthcare, saying he demanded frequent medical attention for lung conditions and other ailments.

Background on Conviction

He was convicted of leading a plot aimed at maintaining his control after he was defeated in the 2022 election to his political opponent, Lula.

Supreme Court justices said that he knew of a plan which included plans to murder his opponent and his vice-presidential running mate, his vice-presidential candidate, and to detain and kill the presiding judge - the top judicial official who has been presiding over the former president's case.

The conspiracy was stopped because it failed to get the endorsement of the military leaders. Lula was inaugurated without problem on January 1st, 2023.

But a week later, on the eighth of January, numerous his backers attacked and damaged government buildings in the capital, Brasília.

The law enforcement took action and around 1,500 people were taken into custody.

The justices found that the rioters had been encouraged by Bolsonaro whose scheme, they said, was for the country's army to step in, bring back stability and bring him back to power.

At the moment, his attorneys called the 27 years and three months sentence unreasonably severe".

He was also prohibited from running for public office until twenty-sixty - eight years after the completion of his term.

The ex-leader called the court case a targeted investigation" and said it was intended to stop him competing in the 2026 national vote.