Bolsonaro arrested after being deemed a flight risk
Jair Bolsonaro has been arrested after authorities found he posed a serious risk of fleeing while under home confinement.
The one-time leader was found guilty of orchestrating a government overthrow in the ninth month and given more than over two decades in incarceration, but he remained under house arrest pending court reviews.
Brazilian Supreme Court Justice Justice Moraes said the decision to arrest the septuagenarian politician was a preventative measure after recent developments came to light.
This involved trying to remove his tracking device and a summons to a public vigil that could enable a possible escape.
Judicial Records Show Escape Risks
In a paperwork permitting the detention, the magistrate said intelligence from the centre monitoring the former president's confinement suggested the ex-president's "intention to break the electronic ankle bracelet to guarantee victory 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 congressional representative, called for a meeting of his backers near his father's house to take place on Saturday evening.
Flávio Bolsonaro wrote on digital networks on the previous day: "Are you going to fight for your country, or watch it all from your smartphone there on your couch? I call on you to battle with us."
He said the vigil would be so followers could offer prayers for his health and for the restoration of democratic rule in our land."
Foreign Shelter Risks
Part of the judge's determination was the potential of his transfer to embassies near the home, considering that the investigations revealed a record of arranging to ask for protection through a diplomatic representation", a statement said.
The court filing highlights that the United States embassy in the national capital, Brasilia, is situated around 13km from his dwelling.
International Reactions
Bolsonaro's legal woes have provoked anger from fellow conservative nationalist US President Trump, causing him to implement a half-rate duty on Brazilian product imports.
The former president is being held in a federal law enforcement building in Brazil's capital city and will have a custody hearing on Sunday.
Recent Judicial Appeals
It was only on the previous day that the ex-leader's attorneys asked the Supreme Court to permit him to serve his whole jail sentence under house arrest, with tracking devices.
They also requested that Bolsonaro be authorized to leave his home for healthcare, saying he demanded frequent medical attention for respiratory ailments and other ailments.
Details of Guilty Verdict
Bolsonaro was determined responsible of orchestrating a scheme aimed at keeping him in power after he lost the 2022 election to his ideological adversary, Lula.
High Court judges said that he knew of a plot which involved plans to kill Lula and his VP candidate, Geraldo Alckmin, and to detain and kill the presiding judge - the High Court judge who has been managing his judicial proceedings.
The conspiracy was stopped because it didn't receive the support of the military leaders. The current president was took office without incident on 1 January 2023.
But a week later, on January 8th, many his backers attacked and damaged government buildings in the national capital, Brazil's capital.
The security forces stepped in and around fifteen hundred individuals were taken into custody.
The magistrates found that the protesters had been incited by Bolsonaro whose scheme, they said, was for the Brazilian military to take action, reestablish control and bring him back to power.
At the time, the legal team called the decades-long sentence unreasonably severe".
He was also prohibited from running for public office until the year 2060 - eight years later after the completion of his term.
The one-time head of state called the court case a political persecution and said it was designed to prevent him running in the next presidential race.