Bolsonaro taken into custody after being deemed a escape threat
Jair Bolsonaro has been taken into custody after authorities concluded he posed a concrete flight risk while under house arrest.
The ex-president was found guilty of orchestrating a government overthrow in September and handed more than 27 years in incarceration, but he remained under confinement pending appeals.
Brazilian Supreme Court Justice Justice Moraes said the move to detain the 70-year-old politician was a precautionary step after fresh information were revealed.
This included seeking to disable his ankle monitor and a call for a public vigil that could enable a chance to flee".
Judicial Records Show Escape Risks
In a filing authorising the detention, Justice Moraes said intelligence from the facility tracking the former president's confinement suggested the one-time head of state's "intention to break the tracking monitor to ensure success in his escape.
This, it said, would be made easier by the confusion caused by the demonstration called by his offspring.
His child, his son Flávio, who holds office as a legislator, called for a meeting of his followers near Bolsonaro's home to take place on Saturday night.
The senator wrote on online platforms on the previous day: "Are you going to fight for your homeland, or observe everything from your smartphone there on your settee? I invite you to fight with us."
He said the vigil would be so backers could offer prayers for his health and for the return of democracy in our nation."
Foreign Shelter Risks
Part of the judge's decision was the potential of Bolsonaro's move to embassies near the dwelling, considering that the inquiries revealed a record of planning to request asylum through a embassy office", a statement said.
The court filing underscores that the US embassy in the capital, Brazil's capital, is positioned around approximately 13 kilometers from the former president's residence.
International Reactions
The former president's legal troubles have drawn the ire of fellow conservative nationalist United States President Trump, prompting him to impose a 50% tariff on imports of Brazilian goods.
Bolsonaro is being detained in a Federal Police station in the capital and will have a detention review on the next day.
Latest Court Petitions
It was only on Friday that the ex-leader's attorneys asked the Top Court to authorize him to complete his entire prison term under house arrest, with electronic monitoring.
They also asked that Bolsonaro be allowed to leave his home for medical care, saying he required frequent medical attention for pulmonary infections and other ailments.
Context of Sentencing
Bolsonaro was convicted of leading a conspiracy aimed at maintaining his control after he failed to win the presidential race to his left-wing rival, President Lula.
High Court judges said that he had knowledge of a plan which encompassed plans to murder the current president and his vice-presidential running mate, Geraldo Alckmin, and to detain and kill the presiding judge - the Supreme Court justice who has been managing Bolsonaro's trial.
The conspiracy was stopped because it didn't receive the endorsement of the armed forces officials. His successor was took office without problem on January 1st, 2023.
But a seven days after, on 8 January, thousands of Bolsonaro supporters invaded and destroyed government buildings in the federal district, Brasília.
The law enforcement stepped in and around 1,500 people were arrested.
The judges found that the protesters had been encouraged by him whose plan, they said, was for the national armed forces to intervene, reestablish control and reinstate his authority.
At the moment, the legal team called the 27 years and three months sentence "absurdly excessive.
He was also barred from seeking elected position until twenty-sixty - a decade minus two years after the conclusion of his imprisonment.
The ex-leader called the legal proceedings a political persecution and said it was designed to prevent him participating in the next presidential race.