The former Brazilian leader has been taken into custody after authorities found he posed a definite escape threat while under home confinement.
The one-time leader was sentenced of planning a government overthrow in September and given more than over two decades in prison, but he continued under confinement pending legal challenges.
Brazilian Supreme Court Justice the presiding justice said the decision to arrest the 70-year-old politician was a precautionary step after fresh information emerged.
This encompassed trying to remove his electronic bracelet and a call for a supporters' gathering that could enable a possible escape.
Judicial Records Show Escape Concerns
In a paperwork permitting the custody, the magistrate said data from the unit overseeing the former president's confinement suggested the former leader's aim to disable the tracking monitor to ensure success in his flight.
This, it said, would be assisted by the confusion caused by the gathering called by his child.
His child, Flávio, who serves as a legislator, called for a assembly of his supporters near the former president's residence to take place on the weekend.
Flávio Bolsonaro wrote on online platforms on Friday: Do you plan to struggle for your country, or watch it all from your phone there on your sofa? I call on you to struggle with us."
He said the demonstration would be so backers could "pray for his physical condition and for the return of democracy in our land."
Diplomatic Refuge Fears
Part of the judge's determination was the potential of his "relocation to foreign missions near the dwelling, considering that the investigations revealed a history of organizing to ask for protection through a diplomatic representation", a announcement said.
The court filing underscores that the American diplomatic mission in the federal district, Brasilia, is positioned around approximately 13 kilometers from Bolsonaro's home.
International Reactions
Bolsonaro's legal woes have generated frustration from fellow populist conservative United States President Donald Trump, leading him to enact a half-rate duty on Brazilian product imports.
He is being held in a Federal Police station in Brazil's capital city and will have a imprisonment assessment on the following day.
Latest Court Petitions
It was only on the previous day that the ex-leader's attorneys asked the Top Court to authorize him to fulfill his full incarceration period under domestic detention, with electronic monitoring.
They also requested that the former president be authorized to exit his dwelling for medical treatment, saying he needed frequent medical attention for pulmonary infections and other ailments.
Background on Conviction
He was found guilty of heading a plot aimed at maintaining his control after he lost the national vote to his ideological adversary, President Lula.
Top judicial officials said that he was aware of a plot which involved plans to kill the current president and his vice-presidential running mate, Alckmin, and to imprison and murder the presiding judge - the Supreme Court justice who has been presiding over the former president's case.
The plot was thwarted because it didn't receive the support of the army and air force commanders. His successor was sworn in without problem on the first day of 2023.
But a following week, on 8 January, many his backers invaded and destroyed government buildings in the federal district, Brasília.
The security forces took action and around 1,500 people were arrested.
The judges found that the demonstrators had been provoked by the former president whose scheme, they said, was for the country's army to take action, bring back stability and bring him back to power.
At the time, his attorneys called the over 27-year sentence "absurdly excessive.
He was also prohibited from seeking elected position until 2060 - eight years later after the end of his sentence.
The one-time head of state called the trial a targeted investigation" and said it was designed to prevent him participating in the next presidential race.
