🔗 Share this article

Jair Bolsonaro has been taken into custody after authorities determined he posed a concrete flight risk while under home confinement.

The one-time leader was convicted of orchestrating a armed takeover in last fall and sentenced more than 27 years in prison, but he was staying under home detention pending appeals.

Brazilian Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes said the decision to arrest the 70-year-old politician was a preventative measure after "new facts" emerged.

This included trying to remove his ankle monitor and a call for a supporters' gathering that could facilitate a potential flight.

Court Filing Details Escape Risks

In a filing authorising the detention, the judge said data from the unit overseeing his home detention suggested the former leader's aim to disable the electronic ankle bracelet to secure accomplishment in his getaway".

This, it said, would be assisted by the disorder caused by the demonstration called by his son.

His child, Flávio, who works as a legislator, called for a assembly of his followers near the former president's residence to take place on Saturday night.

The senator wrote on online platforms on last Friday: Do you plan to struggle for your homeland, or observe everything from your mobile device there on your couch? I invite you to struggle with us."

He said the demonstration would be so supporters could seek divine intervention for his health and for the return of democracy in our land."

Foreign Shelter Risks

Part of the magistrate's ruling was the potential of Bolsonaro's move to foreign missions near the home, considering that the investigations revealed a background of organizing to request asylum through a consular facility", a announcement said.

The legal document underscores that the United States embassy in the federal district, the capital city, is positioned around approximately 13 kilometers from his dwelling.

Worldwide Consequences

Bolsonaro's legal woes have provoked anger from fellow populist conservative American leader President Trump, causing him to impose a half-rate duty on Brazilian product imports.

He is being detained in a federal law enforcement building in the capital and will have a detention review on the next day.

Recent Legal Requests

It was only on Friday that the ex-leader's attorneys asked the Top Court to authorize him to fulfill his full incarceration period under house arrest, with electronic monitoring.

They also petitioned that the former president be authorized to leave his home for medical care, saying he required ongoing care for pulmonary infections and other health problems.

Details of Guilty Verdict

He was convicted of heading a scheme aimed at retaining his authority after he was defeated in the 2022 election to his political opponent, President Lula.

High Court judges said that he had knowledge of a plot which included plans to assassinate the current president and his running partner, his vice-presidential candidate, and to detain and kill the presiding judge - the High Court judge who has been overseeing his judicial proceedings.

The plot was prevented because it failed to get the backing of the army and air force commanders. His successor was inaugurated without incident on 1 January 2023.

But a following week, on the eighth of January, thousands of Bolsonaro supporters stormed and vandalised public facilities in the national capital, Brasília.

The law enforcement stepped in and around 1,500 people were arrested.

The justices found that the demonstrators had been provoked by Bolsonaro whose scheme, they said, was for the Brazilian military to step in, restore order and bring him back to power.

At the time, his attorneys called the over 27-year sentence extremely harsh.

He was also barred from campaigning for office until twenty-sixty - eight years later after the completion of his term.

The one-time head of state called the court case a targeted investigation" and said it was designed to prevent him running in the 2026 presidential election.