Jair Bolsonaro has been detained after authorities determined he posed a definite escape threat while under domestic detention.
The one-time leader was convicted of planning a armed takeover in September and sentenced more than a 27-year term in jail, but he continued under home detention pending appeals.
Brazilian Supreme Court Justice the presiding justice said the action to imprison the 70-year-old politician was a precautionary step after recent developments were revealed.
This involved trying to remove his ankle monitor and a call for a public vigil that could facilitate a potential flight.
Judicial Records Show Flight Fears
In a paperwork permitting the detention, Justice Moraes said information from the unit overseeing Bolsonaro's house arrest suggested the one-time head of state's plan to remove the electronic ankle bracelet to secure accomplishment in his getaway".
This, it said, would be made easier by the disorder caused by the gathering called by his child.
His offspring, his son Flávio, who works as a congressional representative, called for a gathering of his supporters near the former president's residence to take place on the weekend.
His son wrote on digital networks on last Friday: "Are you going to fight for your country, or see it all from your phone there on your couch? I urge you to struggle with us."
He said the gathering would be so backers could offer prayers for his health and for the reestablishment of democratic governance in our land."
Foreign Shelter Risks
Part of the magistrate's determination was the chance of Bolsonaro's move to diplomatic missions near the home, considering that the probes revealed a background of arranging to seek refuge through a consular facility", a statement said.
The court filing emphasizes that the US embassy in the federal district, Brasilia, is located around 13km from the former president's residence.
International Reactions
His judicial problems have drawn the ire of fellow right-wing populist United States President Donald Trump, causing him to impose a half-rate duty on imports of Brazilian goods.
He is being held in a Federal Police station in Brasilia and will experience a detention review on the following day.
Latest Court Petitions
It was only on Friday that the former president's lawyers asked the High Court to permit him to complete his entire prison term under domestic detention, with digital surveillance.
They also petitioned that Bolsonaro be permitted to leave his home for medical care, saying he required frequent medical attention for lung conditions and other health problems.
Background on Conviction
Bolsonaro was convicted of heading a scheme aimed at maintaining his control after he failed to win the presidential race to his left-wing rival, President Lula.
Supreme Court justices said that he was aware of a plot which included plans to murder Lula and his running partner, his vice-presidential candidate, and to detain and kill the presiding judge - the Supreme Court justice who has been presiding over Bolsonaro's trial.
The conspiracy was stopped because it couldn't obtain the backing of the military leaders. The current president was inaugurated without incident on the first day of 2023.
But a week later, on January 8th, many Bolsonaro supporters stormed and vandalised official structures in the federal district, Brasília.
The police intervened and around fifteen hundred individuals were detained.
The magistrates found that the rioters had been provoked by him whose scheme, they said, was for the national armed forces to take action, bring back stability and return him to office.
At the moment, his attorneys called the over 27-year sentence unreasonably severe".
He was also banned from campaigning for office until twenty-sixty - eight years later after the completion of his term.
The ex-leader called the trial a targeted investigation" and said it was aimed at blocking him running in the 2026 national vote.
