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Bolsonaro has been taken into custody after authorities concluded he posed a serious risk of fleeing while under house arrest.

The one-time leader was convicted of orchestrating a military coup in last fall and handed more than a 27-year term in incarceration, but he remained under house arrest pending legal challenges.

High Court Judge Justice Moraes said the decision to arrest the elderly politician was a preventative measure after recent developments came to light.

This involved trying to remove his tracking device and a summons to a supporters' gathering that could "allow for a possible escape.

Judicial Records Show Escape Risks

In a paperwork permitting the arrest, Justice Moraes said data from the unit overseeing his home detention suggested the ex-president's plan to remove the surveillance device to ensure success in his escape.

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

His offspring, Flávio, who holds office as a congressional representative, called for a assembly of his backers near Bolsonaro's home to take place on the weekend.

The senator wrote on social media on Friday: "Are you going to fight for your nation, or see it all from your smartphone there on your sofa? I invite you to battle with us."

He said the vigil would be so backers could seek divine intervention for his health and for the reestablishment of democratic governance in our country."

Embassy Asylum Concerns

Part of the judge's decision was the possibility of the former president's move to diplomatic missions near the home, considering that the probes revealed a background of arranging to ask for protection through a embassy office", a declaration said.

The legal document highlights that the US embassy in the federal district, Brazil's capital, is positioned around 8 miles from Bolsonaro's home.

Global Responses

The former president's legal troubles have generated frustration from fellow right-wing populist American leader Donald Trump, prompting him to impose a half-rate duty on goods coming from Brazil.

Bolsonaro is being held in a national police facility in Brasilia and will undergo a imprisonment assessment on the following day.

Recent Judicial Appeals

It was only on last Friday that the former president's lawyers asked the Supreme Court to permit him to complete his entire prison term under domestic detention, with tracking devices.

They also asked that he be allowed to depart his residence for medical care, saying he demanded ongoing care for lung conditions and other illnesses.

Background on Conviction

Bolsonaro was determined responsible of heading a plot aimed at maintaining his control after he failed to win the 2022 election to his ideological adversary, Lula.

Top judicial officials said that he had knowledge of a scheme which encompassed plans to assassinate the current president and his VP candidate, his vice-presidential candidate, and to arrest and execute the presiding judge - the High Court judge who has been presiding over the former president's case.

The scheme was stopped because it couldn't obtain the endorsement of the military leaders. Lula was inaugurated without issue on 1 January 2023.

But a week later, on 8 January, thousands of his backers stormed and vandalised public facilities in the capital, Brasília.

The police stepped in and around fifteen hundred individuals were detained.

The judges found that the demonstrators had been encouraged by him whose strategy, they said, was for the national armed forces to take action, reestablish control and bring him back to power.

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

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

The ex-leader called the trial a targeted investigation" and said it was aimed at blocking him running in the next presidential race.