Jair Bolsonaro taken into custody after being deemed a flight risk
Bolsonaro has been taken into custody after authorities concluded he posed a serious risk of fleeing while under domestic detention.
The former head of state was found guilty of planning a government overthrow in September and sentenced more than over two decades in incarceration, but he continued under home detention pending legal challenges.
High Court Judge Alexandre de Moraes said the decision to arrest the septuagenarian politician was a preventative measure after "new facts" came to light.
This included trying to remove his electronic bracelet and a call for a supporters' gathering that could "allow for a potential flight.
Court Filing Details Escape Risks
In a document approving the arrest, the judge said information from the facility tracking his home detention suggested the former leader's "intention to break the tracking monitor to guarantee victory in his escape.
This, it said, would be assisted by the confusion caused by the demonstration called by his offspring.
His offspring, Flávio, who holds office as a legislator, called for a meeting of his backers near Bolsonaro's home to take place on Saturday evening.
His son wrote on social media on the previous day: Do you plan to struggle for your homeland, or see it all from your phone there on your sofa? I call on you to fight with us."
He said the vigil would be so followers could offer prayers for his physical condition and for the return of democracy in our nation."
Diplomatic Refuge Fears
Part of the judge's determination was the potential of the former president's transfer to diplomatic missions near the home, considering that the investigations revealed a record of organizing to seek refuge through a diplomatic representation", a declaration said.
The legal document highlights that the United States embassy in the capital, Brasilia, is positioned around 8 miles from his dwelling.
Worldwide Consequences
His judicial problems have drawn the ire of fellow populist conservative US President Trump, leading him to implement a fifty percent tax on imports of Brazilian goods.
Bolsonaro is being held in a national police facility in the capital and will undergo a imprisonment assessment on the next day.
Latest Court Petitions
It was only on the previous day that the his legal team asked the Top Court to allow him to complete his entire prison term under domestic detention, with electronic monitoring.
They also requested that Bolsonaro be authorized to depart his residence for healthcare, saying he required regular treatment for lung conditions and other health problems.
Context of Sentencing
The former president was determined responsible of leading a plot aimed at maintaining his control after he lost the presidential race to his political opponent, Lula.
Top judicial officials said that he knew of a plot which included plans to assassinate his opponent and his vice-presidential running mate, Geraldo Alckmin, and to arrest and execute the presiding judge - the top judicial official who has been presiding over his judicial proceedings.
The scheme was stopped because it couldn't obtain the support of the army and air force commanders. His successor was sworn in without incident on the first day of 2023.
But a seven days after, on January 8th, numerous his followers stormed and vandalised official structures in the capital, the capital city.
The police took action and around fifteen hundred individuals were arrested.
The justices found that the protesters had been encouraged by him whose plan, they said, was for the national armed forces to step in, restore order and bring him back to power.
At the moment, the legal team called the over 27-year sentence extremely harsh.
He was also banned from running for public office until the year 2060 - a decade minus two years after the conclusion of his imprisonment.
The former president called the court case a political persecution and said it was designed to prevent him running in the 2026 national vote.