The former Brazilian president arrested after being declared a flight risk
The former Brazilian leader has been taken into custody after authorities concluded he posed a concrete flight risk while under house arrest.
The ex-president was sentenced of planning a government overthrow in last fall and sentenced more than a 27-year term in jail, but he was staying under house arrest pending court reviews.
Brazilian Supreme Court Justice Justice Moraes said the decision to arrest the septuagenarian politician was a safety action after "new facts" were revealed.
This encompassed trying to remove his electronic bracelet and a summons to a demonstration that could "allow for a chance to flee".
Legal Document Reveals Flight Fears
In a filing authorising the detention, the magistrate said intelligence from the facility tracking the former president's confinement suggested the one-time head of state's plan to remove the electronic ankle bracelet to ensure success in his escape.
This, it said, would be "facilitated by the confusion caused by the gathering called by his child.
His son, Flávio, who works as a congressional representative, called for a gathering of his followers near his father's house to take place on Saturday night.
Flávio Bolsonaro wrote on online platforms on last Friday: Will you battle for your country, or watch it all from your phone there on your couch? I invite you to fight with us."
He said the gathering would be so supporters could "pray for his well-being and for the reestablishment of democratic governance in our country."
Embassy Asylum Concerns
Part of the magistrate's ruling was the possibility of Bolsonaro's transfer to embassies near the home, considering that the inquiries revealed a history of arranging to seek refuge through a consular facility", a statement said.
The judicial paperwork emphasizes that the United States embassy in the federal district, Brasilia, is positioned around 8 miles from Bolsonaro's home.
International Reactions
Bolsonaro's legal woes have provoked anger from fellow conservative nationalist United States President Donald Trump, causing him to impose a 50% tariff on Brazilian product imports.
He is being held in a Federal Police station in Brasilia and will have a imprisonment assessment on the following day.
Recent Judicial Appeals
It was only on the previous day that the his legal team asked the Supreme Court to allow him to fulfill his full incarceration period under house arrest, with digital surveillance.
They also requested that Bolsonaro be permitted to depart his residence for medical treatment, saying he demanded frequent medical attention for respiratory ailments and other health problems.
Context of Sentencing
He was found guilty of leading a conspiracy aimed at retaining his authority after he lost the presidential race to his ideological adversary, Lula.
Supreme Court justices said that he was aware of a plan which encompassed plans to murder the current president and his VP candidate, his vice-presidential candidate, and to arrest and execute Justice Moraes - the Supreme Court justice who has been overseeing his judicial proceedings.
The scheme was stopped because it couldn't obtain the support of the military leaders. The current president was took office without incident on January 1st, 2023.
But a following week, on 8 January, numerous his followers attacked and damaged official structures in the federal district, Brazil's capital.
The police intervened and around fifteen hundred individuals were detained.
The magistrates found that the protesters had been encouraged by the former president whose plan, they said, was for the country's army to take action, reestablish control and bring him back to power.
At the period, the legal team called the 27 years and three months sentence extremely harsh.
He was also barred from campaigning for office until the year 2060 - eight years later after the end of his sentence.
The one-time head of state called the legal proceedings a political persecution and said it was designed to prevent him running in the next presidential race.