Jair Bolsonaro arrested after being declared a escape threat
Jair Bolsonaro has been detained after authorities found he posed a concrete flight risk while under domestic detention.
The one-time leader was sentenced of plotting a armed takeover in last fall and given more than over two decades in jail, but he remained under home detention pending legal challenges.
High Court Judge the presiding justice said the action to imprison the elderly politician was a safety action after "new facts" came to light.
This included seeking to disable his electronic bracelet and a call for a demonstration that could "allow for a possible escape.
Legal Document Reveals Flight Fears
In a filing authorising the detention, the magistrate said information from the unit overseeing the former president's confinement suggested the one-time head of state's "intention to break the electronic ankle bracelet to ensure success in his getaway".
This, it said, would be "facilitated by the chaos caused by the gathering called by his offspring.
His offspring, Flávio Bolsonaro, who serves as a senator, called for a assembly of his supporters near Bolsonaro's home to take place on the weekend.
The senator wrote on social media on the previous day: "Are you going to fight for your nation, or see it all from your mobile device there on your settee? I urge you to struggle with us."
He said the demonstration would be so supporters could offer prayers for his well-being and for the reestablishment of democratic governance in our country."
Diplomatic Refuge Fears
Part of Justice Moraes's decision was the chance of his transfer to diplomatic missions near the home, considering that the inquiries revealed a history of planning to ask for protection through a consular facility", a statement said.
The legal document emphasizes that the United States embassy in the federal district, Brazil's capital, is situated around approximately 13 kilometers from his dwelling.
Worldwide Consequences
The former president's legal troubles have generated frustration from fellow populist conservative US President Donald Trump, causing him to enact a fifty percent tax on Brazilian product imports.
The former president is being kept in a Federal Police station in the capital and will have a imprisonment assessment on the next day.
Recent Legal Requests
It was only on last Friday that the ex-leader's attorneys asked the Top Court to permit him to serve his whole jail sentence under domestic detention, with tracking devices.
They also petitioned that Bolsonaro be allowed to exit his dwelling for medical care, saying he demanded frequent medical attention for lung conditions and other health problems.
Background on Conviction
Bolsonaro was determined responsible of heading a scheme aimed at retaining his authority after he failed to win the presidential race to his ideological adversary, Lula.
Top judicial officials said that he had knowledge of a plot which included plans to kill the current president and his running partner, his vice-presidential candidate, and to detain and kill Justice Moraes - the Supreme Court justice who has been presiding over the former president's case.
The scheme was prevented because it didn't receive the support of the military leaders. His successor was sworn in without problem on 1 January 2023.
But a week later, on January 8th, thousands of Bolsonaro supporters invaded and destroyed official structures in the capital, Brazil's capital.
The law enforcement intervened and around 1,500 people were arrested.
The judges found that the demonstrators had been incited by Bolsonaro whose strategy, 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 "absurdly excessive.
He was also prohibited from seeking elected position until the year 2060 - a decade minus two years after the completion of his term.
The ex-leader called the trial a targeted investigation" and said it was intended to stop him competing in the 2026 presidential election.