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Jair Bolsonaro has been arrested after authorities found he posed a definite escape threat while under domestic detention.

The one-time leader was convicted of planning a military coup in the ninth month and handed more than over two decades in prison, but he was staying under home detention pending court reviews.

Top Judicial Official Justice Moraes said the decision to arrest the elderly politician was a preventative measure after "new facts" came to light.

This included trying to remove his electronic bracelet and a summons to a public vigil that could facilitate a potential flight.

Judicial Records Show Escape Risks

In a filing authorising the custody, Justice Moraes said data from the unit overseeing his home detention suggested the one-time head of state's plan to remove the surveillance device to ensure success in his flight.

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

His child, Flávio Bolsonaro, who serves as a legislator, called for a assembly of his supporters near the former president's residence to take place on Saturday evening.

Flávio Bolsonaro wrote on social media on the previous day: Will you battle for your country, or watch it all from your mobile device there on your settee? I urge you to battle with us."

He said the demonstration would be so supporters could "pray for his physical condition and for the reestablishment of democratic governance in our country."

Embassy Asylum Concerns

Part of the judge's determination was the chance of Bolsonaro's transfer to foreign missions near the home, considering that the investigations revealed a background of arranging to ask for protection through a consular facility", a announcement said.

The legal document highlights that the United States embassy in the capital, Brasilia, is located around 13km from his dwelling.

International Reactions

Bolsonaro's legal woes have drawn the ire of fellow right-wing populist United States President Trump, causing him to implement a 50% tariff on Brazilian product imports.

Bolsonaro is being detained in a federal law enforcement building in Brazil's capital city and will experience a detention review on Sunday.

Latest Court Petitions

It was only on Friday that the his legal team asked the High Court to authorize him to serve his whole jail sentence under domestic detention, with digital surveillance.

They also petitioned that the former president be allowed to depart his residence for medical treatment, saying he demanded frequent medical attention for respiratory ailments and other illnesses.

Background on Conviction

The former president was convicted of orchestrating a scheme aimed at maintaining his control after he lost the presidential race to his ideological adversary, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.

Top judicial officials said that he knew of a plot which encompassed plans to kill the current president and his running partner, his vice-presidential candidate, and to detain and kill Alexandre de Moraes - the High Court judge who has been presiding over his judicial proceedings.

The conspiracy was prevented because it couldn't obtain the endorsement of the armed forces officials. His successor was took office without incident on the first day of 2023.

But a week later, on January 8th, many his followers invaded and destroyed official structures in the federal district, the capital city.

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

The justices found that the rioters had been encouraged by him whose strategy, they said, was for the Brazilian military to take action, bring back stability and reinstate his authority.

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

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

The ex-leader called the trial a targeted investigation" and said it was designed to prevent him competing in the 2026 national vote.