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The former Brazilian leader has been detained after authorities determined he posed a serious risk of fleeing while under domestic detention.

The former head of state was convicted of orchestrating a military coup in September and handed more than over two decades in jail, but he remained under house arrest pending court reviews.

Brazilian Supreme Court Justice Justice Moraes said the action to imprison the 70-year-old politician was a precautionary step after fresh information emerged.

This included trying to remove his tracking device and a summons to a demonstration that could enable a chance to flee".

Legal Document Reveals Flight Fears

In a filing authorising the custody, Justice Moraes said intelligence from the centre monitoring his home detention suggested the ex-president's "intention to break the surveillance device to secure accomplishment in his getaway".

This, it said, would be "facilitated by the confusion caused by the demonstration called by his child.

His son, Flávio Bolsonaro, who works as a congressional representative, called for a assembly of his supporters near the former president's residence to take place on Saturday evening.

Flávio Bolsonaro wrote on digital networks on last Friday: Will you battle for your nation, or watch it all from your phone there on your couch? I urge you to fight with us."

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

Foreign Shelter Risks

Part of the magistrate's decision was the potential of his transfer to diplomatic missions near the residence, considering that the investigations revealed a background of organizing to request asylum through a diplomatic representation", a declaration said.

The legal document underscores that the American diplomatic mission in the federal district, Brasilia, is positioned around approximately 13 kilometers from the former president's residence.

Global Responses

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

The former president is being detained in a federal law enforcement building in Brazil's capital city and will have a custody hearing on the following day.

Latest Court Petitions

It was only on last Friday that the his legal team asked the Top Court to permit him to complete his entire prison term under domestic detention, with electronic monitoring.

They also asked that the former president be permitted to depart his residence for healthcare, saying he required regular treatment for pulmonary infections and other health problems.

Details of Guilty Verdict

Bolsonaro was convicted of leading a conspiracy aimed at retaining his authority after he lost the presidential race to his political opponent, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.

High Court judges said that he was aware of a plot which involved plans to murder his opponent and his running partner, Geraldo Alckmin, and to arrest and execute Alexandre de Moraes - the top judicial official who has been overseeing his judicial proceedings.

The plot was thwarted because it didn't receive the endorsement of the army and air force commanders. Lula was took office without issue on the first day of 2023.

But a week later, on 8 January, many Bolsonaro supporters stormed and vandalised public facilities in the federal district, Brazil's capital.

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

The judges found that the rioters had been provoked by Bolsonaro whose scheme, they said, was for the Brazilian military to intervene, restore order and reinstate his authority.

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

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

The one-time head of state called the trial a "witch hunt and said it was aimed at blocking him running in the 2026 national vote.