🔗 Share this article

Bolsonaro has been detained after authorities concluded he posed a concrete flight risk while under house arrest.

The one-time leader was sentenced of plotting a military coup in the ninth month and sentenced more than 27 years in jail, but he was staying under home detention pending legal challenges.

High Court Judge Alexandre de Moraes said the move to detain the septuagenarian politician was a preventative measure after "new facts" were revealed.

This included attempting to break his tracking device and a invitation to a demonstration that could "allow for a potential flight.

Judicial Records Show Flight Fears

In a paperwork permitting the arrest, the magistrate said information from the centre monitoring Bolsonaro's house arrest suggested the one-time head of state's aim to disable the surveillance device to guarantee victory in his flight.

This, it said, would be assisted by the confusion caused by the protest called by his child.

His son, Flávio, who holds office as a senator, called for a gathering of his backers near the former president's residence to take place on Saturday evening.

Flávio Bolsonaro wrote on online platforms on Friday: Do you plan to struggle for your homeland, or watch it all from your smartphone there on your sofa? I call on you to battle with us."

He said the gathering would be so backers could seek divine intervention for his physical condition and for the reestablishment of democratic governance in our nation."

Diplomatic Refuge Fears

Part of the magistrate's determination was the potential of the former president's move to diplomatic missions near the home, considering that the investigations revealed a history of organizing to request asylum through a consular facility", a declaration said.

The judicial paperwork highlights that the US embassy in the federal district, Brasilia, is positioned around 13km from the former president's residence.

Worldwide Consequences

Bolsonaro's legal woes have generated frustration from fellow right-wing populist American leader Trump, causing him to impose a half-rate duty on imports of Brazilian goods.

He is being kept in a national police facility in Brazil's capital city and will have a detention review on the following day.

Latest Court Petitions

It was only on last Friday that the ex-leader's attorneys asked the Top Court to permit him to complete his entire prison term under domestic detention, with digital surveillance.

They also asked that he be permitted to exit his dwelling for medical treatment, saying he demanded ongoing care for lung conditions and other illnesses.

Background on Conviction

He was found guilty of heading a scheme aimed at keeping him in power after he lost the presidential race to his left-wing rival, President Lula.

High Court judges said that he was aware of a plot which encompassed plans to murder Lula and his vice-presidential running mate, his vice-presidential candidate, and to arrest and execute the presiding judge - the Supreme Court justice who has been managing his judicial proceedings.

The plot was stopped because it failed to get the endorsement of the army and air force commanders. Lula was took office without incident on 1 January 2023.

But a seven days after, on the eighth of January, many his backers stormed and vandalised public facilities in the national capital, Brasília.

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

The judges found that the protesters had been provoked by him whose strategy, they said, was for the Brazilian military to step in, bring back stability and reinstate his authority.

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

He was also prohibited from running for public office until the year 2060 - a decade minus two years after the completion of his term.

The ex-leader called the legal proceedings a political persecution and said it was intended to stop him competing in the 2026 presidential election.