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Bolsonaro has been detained after authorities found he posed a concrete flight risk while under home confinement.

The ex-president was found guilty of planning a military coup in the ninth month and given more than 27 years in incarceration, but he was staying under confinement pending court reviews.

Top Judicial Official Alexandre de Moraes said the decision to arrest the elderly politician was a safety action after "new facts" emerged.

This encompassed trying to remove his tracking device and a invitation to a public vigil that could "allow for a chance to flee".

Judicial Records Show Escape Concerns

In a document approving the arrest, the judge said intelligence from the unit overseeing the former president's confinement suggested the one-time head of state's plan to remove the tracking monitor to guarantee victory in his escape.

This, it said, would be made easier by the chaos caused by the gathering called by his child.

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

His son wrote on social media on the previous day: Do you plan to struggle for your country, or observe everything from your mobile device there on your settee? I call on you to battle with us."

He said the vigil would be so supporters could "pray for his health and for the reestablishment of democratic governance in our land."

Embassy Asylum Concerns

Part of the magistrate's determination was the potential of his move to foreign missions near the dwelling, considering that the inquiries revealed a background of organizing to ask for protection through a consular facility", a declaration said.

The legal document highlights that the United States embassy in the federal district, the capital city, is situated around 8 miles from the former president's residence.

International Reactions

His judicial problems have drawn the ire of fellow right-wing populist US President Donald Trump, causing him to implement a half-rate duty on imports of Brazilian goods.

He is being held in a federal law enforcement building in the capital and will have a custody hearing on Sunday.

Recent Legal Requests

It was only on the previous day that the ex-leader's attorneys asked the High Court to authorize him to complete his entire prison term under home confinement, with digital surveillance.

They also asked that Bolsonaro be allowed to depart his residence for medical care, saying he required regular treatment for lung conditions and other illnesses.

Details of Guilty Verdict

Bolsonaro was determined responsible of heading a scheme aimed at maintaining his control after he was defeated in the presidential race to his political opponent, President Lula.

Top judicial officials said that he knew of a plan which encompassed plans to kill his opponent and his vice-presidential running mate, Alckmin, and to detain and kill Justice Moraes - the top judicial official who has been overseeing the former president's case.

The conspiracy was stopped because it didn't receive the support of the military leaders. Lula was took office without incident on the first day of 2023.

But a seven days after, on the eighth of January, thousands of Bolsonaro supporters attacked and damaged public facilities in the capital, Brazil's capital.

The police intervened and around fifteen hundred individuals were taken into custody.

The justices found that the demonstrators had been incited by him whose plan, they said, was for the country's army to intervene, reestablish control and bring him back to power.

At the moment, the legal team called the over 27-year sentence extremely harsh.

He was also barred from seeking elected position until twenty-sixty - a decade minus two years after the conclusion of his imprisonment.

The one-time head of state called the legal proceedings a political persecution and said it was aimed at blocking him participating in the 2026 national vote.