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Jair Bolsonaro has been taken into custody after authorities determined he posed a definite escape threat while under house arrest.

The one-time leader was found guilty of planning a government overthrow in September and sentenced more than over two decades in incarceration, but he remained under house arrest pending court reviews.

Brazilian Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes said the decision to arrest the 70-year-old politician was a preventative measure after recent developments came to light.

This included seeking to disable his ankle monitor and a call for a supporters' gathering that could enable a possible escape.

Court Filing Details Escape Risks

In a paperwork permitting the custody, the magistrate said data from the centre monitoring Bolsonaro's house arrest suggested the one-time head of state's "intention to break the surveillance device to guarantee victory in his escape.

This, it said, would be assisted by the confusion caused by the gathering called by his offspring.

His child, his son Flávio, who holds office as a senator, called for a meeting of his supporters near the former president's residence to take place on Saturday evening.

His son wrote on online platforms on the previous day: Do you plan to struggle for your homeland, or observe everything from your smartphone there on your couch? I call on you to struggle with us."

He said the vigil would be so backers could seek divine intervention for his well-being and for the restoration of democratic rule in our nation."

Foreign Shelter Risks

Part of the magistrate's ruling was the chance of his move to foreign missions near the residence, considering that the investigations revealed a history of planning to seek refuge through a consular facility", a statement said.

The legal document emphasizes that the American diplomatic mission in the capital, Brasilia, is located around 8 miles from Bolsonaro's home.

International Reactions

His judicial problems have generated frustration from fellow populist conservative American leader Donald Trump, leading him to enact a 50% tariff on Brazilian product imports.

He is being detained in a national police facility in the capital and will undergo a custody hearing on Sunday.

Recent Judicial Appeals

It was only on the previous day that the ex-leader's attorneys asked the Supreme Court to allow him to serve his whole jail sentence under domestic detention, with electronic monitoring.

They also petitioned that he be permitted to leave his home for medical care, saying he required frequent medical attention for lung conditions and other ailments.

Context of Sentencing

Bolsonaro was found guilty of leading a plot aimed at keeping him in power after he lost the presidential race to his ideological adversary, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.

Supreme Court justices said that he knew of a plan which encompassed plans to kill his opponent and his running partner, Alckmin, and to arrest and execute Alexandre de Moraes - the High Court judge who has been presiding over his judicial proceedings.

The plot was prevented because it failed to get the endorsement of the military leaders. The current president was sworn in without incident on January 1st, 2023.

But a week later, on the eighth of January, thousands of his followers attacked and damaged public facilities in the capital, Brasília.

The police stepped in and around approximately 1,500 persons were detained.

The magistrates found that the rioters had been encouraged by him whose strategy, they said, was for the national armed forces to step in, reestablish control and bring him back to power.

At the period, his attorneys called the 27 years and three months sentence extremely harsh.

He was also barred from running for public office until 2060 - eight years later after the completion of his term.

The former president called the trial a targeted investigation" and said it was designed to prevent him participating in the 2026 national vote.