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Bolsonaro has been taken into custody after authorities determined he posed a definite escape threat while under house arrest.

The former head of state was convicted of planning a armed takeover in last fall and handed more than 27 years in jail, but he was staying under confinement pending legal challenges.

Brazilian Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes said the action to imprison the septuagenarian politician was a precautionary step after "new facts" came to light.

This involved attempting to break his ankle monitor and a summons to a supporters' gathering that could facilitate a potential flight.

Court Filing Details Escape Concerns

In a filing authorising the arrest, Justice Moraes said information from the centre monitoring Bolsonaro's house arrest suggested the ex-president's "intention to break the surveillance device to ensure success in his flight.

This, it said, would be "facilitated by the disorder caused by the protest called by his offspring.

His offspring, his son Flávio, who serves as a legislator, called for a gathering of his backers near Bolsonaro's home to take place on the weekend.

Flávio Bolsonaro wrote on online platforms on last Friday: Do you plan to struggle for your country, or watch it all from your phone there on your settee? I invite you to battle with us."

He said the vigil would be so supporters could "pray for his well-being and for the restoration of democratic rule in our land."

Diplomatic Refuge Fears

Part of the magistrate's determination was the chance of the former president's "relocation to foreign missions near the home, considering that the probes revealed a background of planning to ask for protection through a embassy office", a statement said.

The legal document highlights that the United States embassy in the capital, Brasilia, is situated around 13km from Bolsonaro's home.

Worldwide Consequences

Bolsonaro's legal woes have drawn the ire of fellow right-wing populist American leader Donald Trump, leading him to implement a 50% tariff on goods coming from Brazil.

Bolsonaro is being kept in a federal law enforcement building in Brasilia and will have a detention review on the next day.

Recent Judicial Appeals

It was only on Friday that the former president's lawyers asked the Top Court to authorize him to complete his entire prison term under house arrest, with tracking devices.

They also petitioned that the former president be allowed to exit his dwelling for medical care, saying he demanded regular treatment for lung conditions and other health problems.

Details of Guilty Verdict

He was found guilty of leading a conspiracy aimed at retaining his authority after he lost the 2022 election to his ideological adversary, President Lula.

Supreme Court justices said that he knew of a plan which encompassed plans to murder the current president and his VP candidate, Geraldo Alckmin, and to arrest and execute Alexandre de Moraes - the High Court judge who has been overseeing his judicial proceedings.

The plot was thwarted because it didn't receive the backing of the armed forces officials. The current president was inaugurated without incident on January 1st, 2023.

But a seven days after, on 8 January, thousands of Bolsonaro supporters stormed and vandalised public facilities in the capital, the capital city.

The security forces intervened and around 1,500 people were taken into custody.

The justices found that the demonstrators had been encouraged by Bolsonaro whose plan, they said, was for the national armed forces to step in, bring back stability and return him to office.

At the moment, Bolsonaro's lawyers called the over 27-year sentence extremely harsh.

He was also banned from running for public office until twenty-sixty - eight years after the conclusion of his imprisonment.

The ex-leader called the legal proceedings a targeted investigation" and said it was designed to prevent him participating in the next presidential race.