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Jair Bolsonaro has been arrested after authorities determined he posed a definite escape threat while under home confinement.

The ex-president was convicted of plotting a government overthrow in September and handed more than over two decades in jail, but he continued under confinement pending appeals.

Top Judicial Official Justice Moraes said the decision to arrest the elderly politician was a safety action after "new facts" emerged.

This encompassed trying to remove his electronic bracelet and a call for a public vigil that could "allow for a possible escape.

Judicial Records Show Escape Concerns

In a filing authorising the custody, Justice Moraes said intelligence from the unit overseeing Bolsonaro's house arrest suggested the one-time head of state's aim to disable the tracking monitor to ensure success in his escape.

This, it said, would be assisted by the disorder caused by the demonstration called by his offspring.

His offspring, his son Flávio, who holds office as a congressional representative, called for a assembly of his backers near Bolsonaro's home to take place on Saturday night.

Flávio Bolsonaro wrote on digital networks on last Friday: Will you battle for your nation, or observe everything from your smartphone there on your settee? I invite you to battle with us."

He said the demonstration would be so backers could "pray for his well-being and for the reestablishment of democratic governance in our country."

Embassy Asylum Concerns

Part of the magistrate's ruling was the chance of his transfer to diplomatic missions near the dwelling, considering that the inquiries revealed a record of planning to seek refuge through a embassy office", a announcement said.

The legal document underscores that the American diplomatic mission in the national capital, Brazil's capital, is located around 8 miles from his dwelling.

International Reactions

The former president's legal troubles have drawn the ire of fellow conservative nationalist United States President Donald Trump, causing him to impose a half-rate duty on Brazilian product imports.

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

Latest Court Petitions

It was only on Friday that the former president's lawyers asked the Top Court to permit him to fulfill his full incarceration period under house arrest, with electronic monitoring.

They also requested that he be authorized to exit his dwelling for healthcare, saying he demanded frequent medical attention for lung conditions and other health problems.

Background on Conviction

The former president was found guilty of orchestrating a plot aimed at retaining his authority after he failed to win the presidential race to his political opponent, Lula.

Top judicial officials said that he was aware of a plot which included plans to kill his opponent and his VP candidate, Alckmin, and to detain and kill Justice Moraes - the High Court judge who has been managing Bolsonaro's trial.

The plot was stopped because it didn't receive the endorsement of the armed forces officials. Lula was inaugurated without problem on the first day of 2023.

But a following week, on January 8th, numerous his followers attacked and damaged public facilities in the national capital, Brazil's capital.

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

The justices found that the demonstrators had been encouraged by the former president whose strategy, they said, was for the country's army to intervene, restore order and bring him back to power.

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

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

The former president called the legal proceedings a "witch hunt and said it was intended to stop him competing in the 2026 national vote.