The former Brazilian leader has been arrested after authorities found he posed a serious risk of fleeing while under house arrest.
The former head of state was found guilty of plotting a armed takeover in last fall and sentenced more than 27 years in prison, but he continued under home detention pending court reviews.
Brazilian Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes said the action to imprison the 70-year-old politician was a safety action after fresh information came to light.
This included seeking to disable his electronic bracelet and a call for a supporters' gathering that could facilitate a chance to flee".
Legal Document Reveals Escape Risks
In a document approving the detention, Justice Moraes said intelligence from the unit overseeing his home detention suggested the one-time head of state's "intention to break the tracking monitor to ensure success in his getaway".
This, it said, would be "facilitated by the chaos caused by the protest called by his child.
His son, his son Flávio, who serves as a congressional representative, called for a assembly of his followers near his father's house to take place on Saturday evening.
The senator wrote on social media on Friday: "Are you going to fight for your homeland, or see it all from your smartphone there on your settee? I urge you to struggle with us."
He said the gathering would be so backers could seek divine intervention for his physical condition and for the reestablishment of democratic governance in our nation."
Embassy Asylum Concerns
Part of the judge's decision was the potential of his move to diplomatic missions near the residence, considering that the inquiries revealed a history of organizing to seek refuge through a diplomatic representation", a announcement said.
The court filing underscores that the United States embassy in the capital, Brazil's capital, is positioned around approximately 13 kilometers from the former president's residence.
International Reactions
His judicial problems have generated frustration from fellow right-wing populist United States President Trump, leading him to impose a fifty percent tax on imports of Brazilian goods.
He is being kept in a federal law enforcement building in Brasilia and will experience a detention review on the following day.
Recent Legal Requests
It was only on Friday that the his legal team asked the High Court to permit him to serve his whole jail sentence under domestic detention, with tracking devices.
They also requested that he be permitted to exit his dwelling for healthcare, saying he needed regular treatment for pulmonary infections and other ailments.
Background on Conviction
He was found guilty of leading a conspiracy aimed at keeping him in power after he lost the 2022 election to his ideological adversary, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.
Supreme Court justices said that he was aware of a scheme which encompassed plans to murder his opponent and his vice-presidential running mate, his vice-presidential candidate, and to detain and kill Alexandre de Moraes - the top judicial official who has been presiding over the former president's case.
The plot was stopped because it failed to get the support of the army and air force commanders. The current president was inaugurated without problem on January 1st, 2023.
But a following week, on the eighth of January, many his followers attacked and damaged public facilities in the national capital, Brasília.
The security forces intervened and around 1,500 people were taken into custody.
The justices found that the rioters had been encouraged by Bolsonaro whose strategy, they said, was for the country's army to step in, bring back stability and return him to office.
At the time, the legal team called the decades-long sentence unreasonably severe".
He was also prohibited from campaigning for office until 2060 - eight years after the completion of his term.
The former president called the legal proceedings a targeted investigation" and said it was designed to prevent him competing in the next presidential race.
