The former Brazilian leader has been taken into custody after authorities determined he posed a serious risk of fleeing while under home confinement.
The former head of state was sentenced of planning a military coup in September and given more than a 27-year term in prison, but he was staying under confinement pending court reviews.
Brazilian Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes said the decision to arrest the elderly politician was a safety action after "new facts" were revealed.
This encompassed seeking to disable his ankle monitor and a call for a supporters' gathering that could enable a possible escape.
Legal Document Reveals Flight Fears
In a filing authorising the custody, the magistrate said information from the unit overseeing Bolsonaro's house arrest suggested the former leader's "intention to break the surveillance device to guarantee victory in his getaway".
This, it said, would be assisted by the disorder caused by the gathering called by his child.
His child, Flávio, who serves as a legislator, called for a gathering of his followers near his father's house to take place on the weekend.
His son wrote on social media on the previous day: Will you battle for your country, or see it all from your phone there on your couch? I invite you to battle with us."
He said the gathering would be so supporters could seek divine intervention for his health and for the return of democracy in our country."
Diplomatic Refuge Fears
Part of the magistrate's ruling was the possibility of Bolsonaro's move to foreign missions near the residence, considering that the investigations revealed a record of organizing to request asylum through a embassy office", a statement said.
The court filing emphasizes that the United States embassy in the national capital, Brazil's capital, is located around approximately 13 kilometers from Bolsonaro's home.
International Reactions
The former president's legal troubles have drawn the ire of fellow populist conservative United States President President Trump, leading him to enact a fifty percent tax on imports of Brazilian goods.
The former president is being detained in a federal law enforcement building in Brazil's capital city and will experience a imprisonment assessment on Sunday.
Latest Court Petitions
It was only on Friday that the former president's lawyers asked the High Court to allow him to complete his entire prison term under house arrest, with digital surveillance.
They also asked that the former president be allowed to exit his dwelling for healthcare, saying he required ongoing care for lung conditions and other health problems.
Background on Conviction
He was convicted of heading a scheme aimed at maintaining his control after he lost the presidential race to his political opponent, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.
Supreme Court justices said that he was aware of a plot which encompassed plans to kill his opponent and his running partner, Geraldo Alckmin, and to imprison and murder Justice Moraes - the High Court judge who has been presiding over the former president's case.
The conspiracy was thwarted because it didn't receive the endorsement of the armed forces officials. His successor was inaugurated without issue on January 1st, 2023.
But a week later, on 8 January, many Bolsonaro supporters attacked and damaged government buildings in the federal district, the capital city.
The law enforcement took action and around 1,500 people were arrested.
The justices found that the rioters had been incited by him whose strategy, they said, was for the national armed forces to take action, reestablish control and bring him back to power.
At the moment, Bolsonaro's lawyers called the decades-long sentence unreasonably severe".
He was also prohibited from running for public office until twenty-sixty - eight years later after the completion of his term.
The one-time head of state called the court case a political persecution and said it was designed to prevent him participating in the 2026 national vote.
