Bolsonaro has been detained after authorities determined he posed a definite escape threat while under home confinement.
The former head of state was found guilty of orchestrating a military coup in the ninth month and sentenced more than over two decades in jail, but he was staying under house arrest pending legal challenges.
High Court Judge the presiding justice said the decision to arrest the elderly politician was a safety action after recent developments emerged.
This included trying to remove his ankle monitor and a invitation to a supporters' gathering that could "allow for a chance to flee".
Legal Document Reveals Escape Risks
In a filing authorising the detention, Justice Moraes said information from the facility tracking the former president's confinement suggested the former leader's aim to disable the tracking monitor to guarantee victory in his getaway".
This, it said, would be made easier by the confusion caused by the gathering called by his child.
His child, his son Flávio, who serves as a legislator, called for a assembly of his followers near his father's house to take place on Saturday night.
His son wrote on online platforms on the previous day: Do you plan to struggle for your nation, or observe everything from your phone there on your settee? I call on you to battle with us."
He said the gathering would be so followers could seek divine intervention for his health and for the reestablishment of democratic governance in our nation."
Embassy Asylum Concerns
Part of the judge's decision was the possibility of his "relocation to diplomatic missions near the residence, considering that the inquiries revealed a background of organizing to seek refuge through a diplomatic representation", a statement said.
The legal document highlights that the US embassy in the capital, Brasilia, is located around 13km from his dwelling.
International Reactions
The former president's legal troubles have provoked anger from fellow right-wing populist United States President President Trump, prompting him to enact a half-rate duty on imports of Brazilian goods.
He is being detained in a Federal Police station in the capital and will undergo a imprisonment assessment on the following day.
Latest Court Petitions
It was only on last Friday that the former president's lawyers asked the High Court to authorize him to complete his entire prison term under domestic detention, with tracking devices.
They also petitioned that he be allowed to leave his home for healthcare, saying he needed ongoing care for respiratory ailments and other ailments.
Context of Sentencing
Bolsonaro was determined responsible of orchestrating a scheme aimed at keeping him in power after he failed to win the national vote to his ideological adversary, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.
High Court judges said that he had knowledge of a scheme which encompassed plans to assassinate Lula and his vice-presidential running mate, Alckmin, and to arrest and execute the presiding judge - the top judicial official who has been presiding over the former president's case.
The plot was prevented because it failed to get the endorsement of the armed forces officials. Lula was sworn in without problem on the first day of 2023.
But a week later, on 8 January, thousands of Bolsonaro supporters attacked and damaged official structures in the national capital, the capital city.
The law enforcement stepped in and around fifteen hundred individuals were taken into custody.
The magistrates found that the demonstrators had been incited by the former president whose strategy, they said, was for the national armed forces to step in, restore order and bring him back to power.
At the moment, Bolsonaro's lawyers called the decades-long sentence extremely harsh.
He was also banned from seeking elected position until the year 2060 - eight years after the completion of his term.
The ex-leader called the legal proceedings a targeted investigation" and said it was intended to stop him competing in the 2026 national vote.
