Jair Bolsonaro arrested after being declared a risk of fleeing

Bolsonaro has been arrested after authorities found he posed a concrete flight risk while under house arrest.

The former head of state was found guilty of plotting a armed takeover in last fall and sentenced more than a 27-year term in prison, but he continued under confinement pending appeals.

Brazilian Supreme Court Justice Justice Moraes said the decision to arrest the septuagenarian politician was a precautionary step after "new facts" were revealed.

This included attempting to break his electronic bracelet and a invitation to a supporters' gathering that could facilitate a potential flight.

Court Filing Details Escape Risks

In a paperwork permitting the arrest, Justice Moraes said data from the unit overseeing the former president's confinement suggested the one-time head of state's aim to disable the electronic ankle bracelet to secure accomplishment in his flight.

This, it said, would be "facilitated by the chaos caused by the gathering called by his child.

His offspring, Flávio, who serves as a senator, called for a gathering of his backers near his father's house to take place on Saturday evening.

His son wrote on digital networks on Friday: Will you battle for your country, or observe everything from your smartphone there on your sofa? I call on you to struggle with us."

He said the gathering would be so backers could seek divine intervention for his physical condition and for the restoration of democratic rule in our land."

Foreign Shelter Risks

Part of the judge's determination was the potential of his move to diplomatic missions near the dwelling, considering that the investigations revealed a background of organizing to ask for protection through a embassy office", a declaration said.

The judicial paperwork emphasizes that the US embassy in the national capital, Brasilia, is located around 13km from Bolsonaro's home.

International Reactions

His judicial problems have generated frustration from fellow populist conservative US President Donald Trump, leading him to impose a 50% tariff on imports of Brazilian goods.

He is being held in a national police facility in Brasilia and will have a custody hearing on Sunday.

Recent Legal Requests

It was only on the previous day that the his legal team asked the Top Court to authorize him to complete his entire prison term under domestic detention, with tracking devices.

They also requested that he be allowed to leave his home for medical treatment, saying he demanded frequent medical attention for pulmonary infections and other ailments.

Background on Conviction

Bolsonaro was convicted of leading a scheme aimed at maintaining his control after he was defeated in the presidential race to his political opponent, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.

High Court judges said that he had knowledge 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 High Court judge who has been managing his judicial proceedings.

The scheme was prevented because it didn't receive the support of the armed forces officials. Lula was took office without incident on 1 January 2023.

But a following week, on the eighth of January, many his backers attacked and damaged official structures in the national capital, the capital city.

The law enforcement intervened and around approximately 1,500 persons were arrested.

The justices found that the demonstrators had been encouraged by the former president whose plan, they said, was for the national armed forces to step in, reestablish control and reinstate his authority.

At the time, his attorneys called the 27 years and three months sentence "absurdly excessive.

He was also banned from campaigning for office until twenty-sixty - eight years later after the end of his sentence.

The former president called the court case a "witch hunt and said it was designed to prevent him participating in the next presidential race.