The former Brazilian leader has been detained after authorities determined he posed a definite escape threat while under domestic detention.
The one-time leader was found guilty of plotting a armed takeover in the ninth month and handed more than a 27-year term in incarceration, but he remained under house arrest pending appeals.
Top Judicial Official Alexandre de Moraes said the decision to arrest the septuagenarian politician was a safety action after fresh information emerged.
This encompassed attempting to break his tracking device and a invitation to a public vigil that could facilitate a possible escape.
Legal Document Reveals Flight Fears
In a document approving the arrest, the magistrate said intelligence from the facility tracking the former president's confinement suggested the former leader's plan to remove the tracking monitor to ensure success in his getaway".
This, it said, would be "facilitated by the disorder caused by the gathering called by his son.
His son, Flávio Bolsonaro, who works as a legislator, called for a gathering of his backers near Bolsonaro's home to take place on Saturday evening.
The senator wrote on social media on last Friday: Do you plan to struggle for your country, or observe everything from your mobile device there on your sofa? I invite you to struggle with us."
He said the vigil would be so supporters could seek divine intervention for his physical condition and for the return of democracy in our country."
Diplomatic Refuge Fears
Part of the judge's determination was the possibility of the former president's transfer to foreign missions near the home, considering that the probes revealed a history of arranging to seek refuge through a embassy office", a statement said.
The legal document highlights that the United States embassy in the federal district, Brazil's capital, is situated around approximately 13 kilometers from the former president's residence.
International Reactions
The former president's legal troubles have drawn the ire of fellow populist conservative United States President Donald Trump, leading him to impose a 50% tariff on goods coming from Brazil.
Bolsonaro is being held in a federal law enforcement building in Brazil's capital city and will experience a custody hearing on Sunday.
Recent Legal Requests
It was only on the previous day that the ex-leader's attorneys asked the Supreme Court to authorize him to complete his entire prison term under house arrest, with digital surveillance.
They also petitioned that Bolsonaro be permitted to leave his home for medical care, saying he required frequent medical attention for respiratory ailments and other ailments.
Context of Sentencing
He was found guilty of leading a scheme aimed at maintaining his control after he lost the national vote to his left-wing rival, Lula.
Top judicial officials said that he was aware of a scheme which included plans to murder his opponent and his vice-presidential running mate, Geraldo Alckmin, and to imprison and murder the presiding judge - the Supreme Court justice who has been managing the former president's case.
The scheme was thwarted because it failed to get the backing of the armed forces officials. The current president was inaugurated without issue on January 1st, 2023.
But a week later, on the eighth of January, many his followers invaded and destroyed public facilities in the federal district, Brazil's capital.
The law enforcement intervened and around approximately 1,500 persons were taken into custody.
The justices found that the protesters had been provoked by Bolsonaro whose scheme, they said, was for the national armed forces to step in, bring back stability and reinstate his authority.
At the period, Bolsonaro's lawyers called the 27 years and three months sentence unreasonably severe".
He was also prohibited from running for public office until 2060 - a decade minus two years after the end of his sentence.
The one-time head of state called the legal proceedings a targeted investigation" and said it was intended to stop him participating in the next presidential race.
