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The former Brazilian leader has been taken into custody after authorities determined he posed a serious risk of fleeing while under home confinement.

The former head of state was found guilty of plotting a government overthrow in the ninth month and given more than a 27-year term in prison, but he continued under confinement pending appeals.

Top Judicial Official Alexandre de Moraes said the move to detain the septuagenarian politician was a preventative measure after "new facts" came to light.

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

Judicial Records Show Escape Concerns

In a document approving the arrest, the magistrate said information from the centre monitoring Bolsonaro's house arrest suggested the ex-president's aim to disable the tracking monitor to ensure success in his getaway".

This, it said, would be "facilitated by the confusion caused by the gathering called by his offspring.

His offspring, Flávio, who holds office as a legislator, called for a gathering of his backers near Bolsonaro's home to take place on Saturday night.

The senator wrote on social media on Friday: Will you battle for your nation, or see it all from your smartphone there on your settee? I call on you to battle with us."

He said the gathering would be so supporters could "pray for his physical condition and for the return of democracy in our nation."

Diplomatic Refuge Fears

Part of the magistrate's ruling was the chance of Bolsonaro's move to embassies near the home, considering that the investigations revealed a history of planning to ask for protection through a embassy office", a declaration said.

The legal document emphasizes that the United States embassy in the federal district, Brazil's capital, is located around approximately 13 kilometers from Bolsonaro's home.

International Reactions

His judicial problems have generated frustration from fellow right-wing populist American leader Donald Trump, prompting him to impose a half-rate duty on imports of Brazilian goods.

The former president is being detained in a Federal Police station in Brasilia and will have a detention review on Sunday.

Recent Judicial Appeals

It was only on last Friday that the ex-leader's attorneys asked the Supreme Court to authorize him to serve his whole jail sentence under house arrest, with electronic monitoring.

They also asked that the former president be authorized to exit his dwelling for medical treatment, saying he demanded regular treatment for pulmonary infections and other health problems.

Details of Guilty Verdict

Bolsonaro was convicted of orchestrating a scheme aimed at keeping him in power after he was defeated in the 2022 election to his left-wing rival, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.

Supreme Court justices said that he knew of a scheme which involved plans to kill Lula and his VP candidate, Alckmin, and to arrest and execute Alexandre de Moraes - the top judicial official who has been presiding over his judicial proceedings.

The plot was stopped because it couldn't obtain the backing of the armed forces officials. His successor was sworn in without issue on 1 January 2023.

But a seven days after, on January 8th, many his backers invaded and destroyed public facilities in the federal district, Brazil's capital.

The police intervened and around approximately 1,500 persons were taken into custody.

The judges found that the protesters had been encouraged by the former president whose scheme, they said, was for the national armed forces to intervene, reestablish control and reinstate his authority.

At the time, the legal team called the 27 years and three months sentence extremely harsh.

He was also barred from campaigning for office until twenty-sixty - a decade minus two years after the conclusion of his imprisonment.

The former president called the legal proceedings a political persecution and said it was intended to stop him running in the 2026 presidential election.