🔗 Share this article

Bolsonaro has been taken into custody after authorities found he posed a serious risk of fleeing while under house arrest.

The former head of state was found guilty of orchestrating a military coup in last fall and handed more than a 27-year term in jail, but he continued under house arrest pending legal challenges.

High Court Judge Justice Moraes said the action to imprison the 70-year-old politician was a precautionary step after "new facts" emerged.

This encompassed seeking to disable his tracking device and a invitation to a demonstration that could enable a potential flight.

Legal Document Reveals Escape Risks

In a filing authorising the arrest, the judge said data from the unit overseeing his home detention suggested the one-time head of state's plan to remove the electronic ankle bracelet to guarantee victory in his flight.

This, it said, would be assisted by the chaos caused by the protest called by his offspring.

His son, Flávio Bolsonaro, who works as a senator, called for a gathering of his backers near his father's house to take place on Saturday evening.

His son wrote on online platforms on Friday: "Are you going to fight for your nation, or see it all from your mobile device there on your sofa? I invite you to battle with us."

He said the vigil would be so backers could "pray for his physical condition and for the restoration of democratic rule in our country."

Embassy Asylum Concerns

Part of the magistrate's determination was the potential of his transfer to diplomatic missions near the home, considering that the probes revealed a background of organizing to seek refuge through a diplomatic representation", a declaration said.

The court filing underscores that the American diplomatic mission in the federal district, the capital city, is located around approximately 13 kilometers from the former president's residence.

Worldwide Consequences

Bolsonaro's legal woes have generated frustration from fellow right-wing populist United States President Trump, prompting him to implement a fifty percent tax on imports of Brazilian goods.

The former president is being kept in a national police facility in Brazil's capital city and will have a imprisonment assessment on the following day.

Recent Legal Requests

It was only on Friday that the ex-leader's attorneys asked the Supreme Court to allow him to fulfill his full incarceration period under domestic detention, with tracking devices.

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

Details of Guilty Verdict

The former president was found guilty of leading a plot aimed at maintaining his control after he failed to win the national vote to his ideological adversary, President Lula.

Supreme Court justices said that he had knowledge of a plan which involved plans to murder the current president and his vice-presidential running mate, his vice-presidential candidate, and to imprison and murder Alexandre de Moraes - the High Court judge who has been managing the former president's case.

The plot was prevented because it couldn't obtain the support of the military leaders. His successor was took office without incident on January 1st, 2023.

But a following week, on January 8th, many his followers stormed and vandalised official structures in the federal district, Brasília.

The security forces stepped in and around approximately 1,500 persons were detained.

The justices found that the protesters 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 time, his attorneys called the over 27-year sentence extremely harsh.

He was also barred from campaigning for office until 2060 - a decade minus two years after the completion of his term.

The former president called the court case a "witch hunt and said it was designed to prevent him running in the 2026 presidential election.