Jair Bolsonaro taken into custody after being deemed a risk of fleeing

Jair Bolsonaro has been arrested after authorities found he posed a serious risk of fleeing while under home confinement.

The ex-president was found guilty of plotting a armed takeover in September and given more than 27 years in jail, but he remained under house arrest pending legal challenges.

Brazilian Supreme Court Justice Justice Moraes said the decision to arrest the septuagenarian politician was a precautionary step after fresh information came to light.

This involved attempting to break his tracking device and a invitation to a public vigil that could "allow for a possible escape.

Judicial Records Show Flight Fears

In a document approving the custody, the judge said intelligence from the unit overseeing his home detention suggested the former leader's "intention to break the surveillance device to secure accomplishment in his flight.

This, it said, would be "facilitated by the confusion caused by the gathering called by his son.

His offspring, Flávio, who serves as a legislator, called for a meeting of his backers near the former president's residence to take place on Saturday night.

Flávio Bolsonaro wrote on online platforms on Friday: Will you battle for your homeland, or see it all from your mobile device there on your couch? I invite you to fight with us."

He said the vigil would be so followers could offer prayers for his well-being and for the return of democracy in our land."

Foreign Shelter Risks

Part of the magistrate's ruling was the chance of his "relocation to diplomatic missions near the dwelling, considering that the probes revealed a history of arranging to ask for protection through a diplomatic representation", a declaration said.

The court filing underscores that the American diplomatic mission in the federal district, Brazil's capital, is positioned around approximately 13 kilometers from Bolsonaro's home.

Worldwide Consequences

The former president's legal troubles have generated frustration from fellow right-wing populist American leader Trump, causing him to implement a 50% tariff on imports of Brazilian goods.

The former president is being detained in a federal law enforcement building in the capital and will experience a imprisonment assessment on the following day.

Latest Court Petitions

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

They also asked that he be authorized to leave his home for medical treatment, saying he required frequent medical attention for lung conditions and other ailments.

Details of Guilty Verdict

He was determined responsible of leading a conspiracy aimed at retaining his authority after he was defeated in the national vote to his ideological adversary, Lula.

Supreme Court justices said that he knew of a plan which included plans to kill Lula and his VP candidate, Alckmin, and to detain and kill the presiding judge - the Supreme Court justice who has been managing the former president's case.

The plot was stopped because it didn't receive the endorsement of the military leaders. The current president was sworn in without issue on the first day of 2023.

But a week later, on January 8th, numerous Bolsonaro supporters stormed and vandalised government buildings in the capital, the capital city.

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

The judges found that the protesters had been encouraged by the former president whose strategy, they said, was for the national armed forces to take action, bring back stability and reinstate his authority.

At the period, Bolsonaro's lawyers called the 27 years and three months sentence "absurdly excessive.

He was also prohibited from seeking elected position until 2060 - a decade minus two years after the completion of his term.

The one-time head of state called the legal proceedings a "witch hunt and said it was intended to stop him competing in the next presidential race.