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Jair Bolsonaro has been arrested after authorities found he posed a serious risk of fleeing while under house arrest.

The one-time leader was convicted of planning a government overthrow in the ninth month and given more than over two decades in jail, but he was staying under home detention pending appeals.

Brazilian Supreme Court Justice the presiding justice said the decision to arrest the elderly politician was a preventative measure after "new facts" came to light.

This included trying to remove his tracking device and a call for a supporters' gathering that could "allow for a possible escape.

Legal Document Reveals Flight Fears

In a filing authorising the custody, the magistrate said information from the unit overseeing his home detention suggested the one-time head of state's "intention to break the electronic ankle bracelet to guarantee victory in his getaway".

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

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

The senator wrote on digital networks on last Friday: Will you battle for your homeland, or watch it all from your smartphone there on your couch? I urge you to fight with us."

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

Diplomatic Refuge Fears

Part of the judge's decision was the chance of the former president's "relocation to foreign missions near the dwelling, considering that the inquiries revealed a background of arranging to request asylum through a consular facility", a announcement said.

The legal document highlights that the American diplomatic mission in the federal district, Brazil's capital, is situated around approximately 13 kilometers from the former president's residence.

Global Responses

Bolsonaro's legal woes have generated frustration from fellow right-wing populist United States President President Trump, prompting him to implement a half-rate duty on Brazilian product imports.

Bolsonaro is being held in a Federal Police station in the capital and will undergo a custody hearing on Sunday.

Latest Court Petitions

It was only on Friday that the his legal team asked the Top Court to authorize him to serve his whole jail sentence under home confinement, with tracking devices.

They also asked that the former president be authorized to depart his residence for medical treatment, saying he demanded regular treatment for respiratory ailments and other illnesses.

Context of Sentencing

He was found guilty of orchestrating a conspiracy aimed at maintaining his control after he failed to win the 2022 election to his political opponent, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.

High Court judges said that he knew of a plan which encompassed plans to murder Lula and his VP candidate, Alckmin, and to imprison and murder Justice Moraes - the top judicial official who has been overseeing Bolsonaro's trial.

The plot was prevented because it didn't receive the endorsement of the armed forces officials. The current president was sworn in without problem on the first day of 2023.

But a week later, on January 8th, many his backers stormed and vandalised official structures in the national capital, Brasília.

The law enforcement intervened and around 1,500 people were detained.

The justices found that the demonstrators had been provoked by him whose strategy, they said, was for the national armed forces to intervene, bring back stability and reinstate his authority.

At the time, Bolsonaro's lawyers called the decades-long sentence "absurdly excessive.

He was also banned from seeking elected position until twenty-sixty - eight years later after the conclusion of his imprisonment.

The ex-leader called the trial a political persecution and said it was aimed at blocking him competing in the 2026 national vote.