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The former Brazilian leader has been arrested after authorities determined he posed a serious risk of fleeing while under house arrest.

The one-time leader was convicted of orchestrating a military coup in September and given more than a 27-year term in jail, but he remained under house arrest pending legal challenges.

Brazilian Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes said the action to imprison the septuagenarian politician was a precautionary step after fresh information came to light.

This involved attempting to break his ankle monitor and a call for a demonstration that could facilitate a possible escape.

Court Filing Details Flight Fears

In a paperwork permitting the arrest, the judge said data from the facility tracking the former president's confinement suggested the one-time head of state's aim to disable the surveillance device to guarantee victory in his getaway".

This, it said, would be made easier by the disorder caused by the demonstration called by his child.

His son, his son Flávio, who serves as a senator, called for a assembly of his backers near his father's house to take place on Saturday night.

Flávio Bolsonaro wrote on online platforms on Friday: "Are you going to fight for your homeland, or watch it all from your phone there on your sofa? I invite you to fight with us."

He said the demonstration would be so followers could offer prayers for his physical condition and for the restoration of democratic rule in our nation."

Embassy Asylum Concerns

Part of the magistrate's ruling was the possibility of the former president's "relocation to diplomatic missions near the residence, considering that the investigations revealed a background of planning to ask for protection through a diplomatic representation", a declaration said.

The court filing highlights that the American diplomatic mission in the federal district, Brasilia, is located around approximately 13 kilometers from Bolsonaro's home.

International Reactions

His judicial problems have provoked anger from fellow conservative nationalist US President Trump, causing him to enact a fifty percent tax on goods coming from Brazil.

Bolsonaro is being detained in a federal law enforcement building in the capital and will undergo a imprisonment assessment on the next day.

Recent Legal Requests

It was only on Friday that the ex-leader's attorneys asked the Top Court to permit him to serve his whole jail sentence under domestic detention, with digital surveillance.

They also requested that Bolsonaro be authorized to leave his home for medical treatment, saying he needed ongoing care for pulmonary infections and other ailments.

Background on Conviction

Bolsonaro was convicted of heading a conspiracy aimed at retaining his authority after he lost the 2022 election to his political opponent, Lula.

Top judicial officials said that he was aware of a plan which involved plans to kill the current president and his vice-presidential running mate, Geraldo Alckmin, and to detain and kill Alexandre de Moraes - the High Court judge who has been managing the former president's case.

The conspiracy was thwarted because it failed to get the support of the military leaders. Lula was sworn in without problem on 1 January 2023.

But a following week, on the eighth of January, many Bolsonaro supporters stormed and vandalised official structures in the capital, Brazil's capital.

The police intervened and around fifteen hundred individuals were arrested.

The judges found that the protesters had been encouraged by Bolsonaro whose scheme, they said, was for the national armed forces to take action, reestablish control and bring him back to power.

At the moment, his attorneys called the decades-long sentence "absurdly excessive.

He was also barred from running for public office until the year 2060 - eight years after the completion of his term.

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