The former Brazilian leader has been taken into custody after authorities found he posed a definite escape threat while under house arrest.
The one-time leader was found guilty of plotting a government overthrow in the ninth month and given more than over two decades in incarceration, but he was staying under home detention pending appeals.
Top Judicial Official Alexandre de Moraes said the action to imprison the septuagenarian politician was a safety action after recent developments came to light.
This included seeking to disable his tracking device and a invitation to a public vigil that could enable a potential flight.
Court Filing Details Flight Fears
In a filing authorising the arrest, the judge said intelligence from the facility tracking his home detention suggested the one-time head of state's plan to remove the surveillance device to ensure success in his getaway".
This, it said, would be "facilitated by the disorder caused by the protest called by his son.
His offspring, Flávio Bolsonaro, who serves as a legislator, called for a gathering of his followers near his father's house to take place on Saturday evening.
Flávio Bolsonaro wrote on online platforms on the previous day: Will you battle for your nation, or observe everything from your smartphone there on your sofa? I call on you to fight with us."
He said the demonstration would be so supporters could seek divine intervention for his well-being and for the return of democracy in our land."
Embassy Asylum Concerns
Part of the magistrate's ruling was the chance of his "relocation to foreign missions near the dwelling, considering that the inquiries revealed a background of planning to ask for protection through a diplomatic representation", a declaration said.
The legal document underscores that the US embassy in the federal district, Brazil's capital, is situated around 8 miles from Bolsonaro's home.
International Reactions
Bolsonaro's legal woes have generated frustration from fellow populist conservative United States President Trump, leading him to enact a 50% tariff on Brazilian product imports.
Bolsonaro is being kept in a Federal Police station in Brasilia and will have a imprisonment assessment on the following day.
Latest Court Petitions
It was only on last Friday that the his legal team asked the Top Court to authorize him to complete his entire prison term under domestic detention, with digital surveillance.
They also asked that the former president be permitted to exit his dwelling for healthcare, saying he demanded frequent medical attention for lung conditions and other illnesses.
Details of Guilty Verdict
He was found guilty of orchestrating a scheme aimed at maintaining his control after he failed to win the presidential race to his political opponent, Lula.
High Court judges said that he had knowledge of a plan which included plans to murder his opponent and his VP candidate, his vice-presidential candidate, and to detain and kill Justice Moraes - the High Court judge who has been managing the former president's case.
The plot was thwarted because it didn't receive the backing of the armed forces officials. His successor was inaugurated without incident on January 1st, 2023.
But a week later, on January 8th, numerous Bolsonaro supporters attacked and damaged official structures in the national capital, the capital city.
The security forces stepped in and around approximately 1,500 persons were detained.
The magistrates found that the demonstrators had been incited by Bolsonaro whose strategy, they said, was for the Brazilian military to intervene, restore order and bring him back to power.
At the period, the legal team called the over 27-year sentence extremely harsh.
He was also prohibited from seeking elected position until twenty-sixty - a decade minus two years after the end of his sentence.
The ex-leader called the court case a "witch hunt and said it was intended to stop him participating in the 2026 presidential election.
