Jair Bolsonaro has been detained after authorities determined he posed a concrete flight risk while under domestic detention.
The former head of state was found guilty of orchestrating a military coup in last fall and given more than a 27-year term in incarceration, but he remained under confinement pending court reviews.
Brazilian Supreme Court Justice Justice Moraes said the decision to arrest the septuagenarian politician was a preventative measure after "new facts" emerged.
This included trying to remove his electronic bracelet and a call for a demonstration that could "allow for a possible escape.
Judicial Records Show Escape Concerns
In a paperwork permitting the arrest, the judge said intelligence from the centre monitoring the former president's confinement suggested the former leader's "intention to break the electronic ankle bracelet to secure accomplishment in his flight.
This, it said, would be made easier by the confusion caused by the protest called by his son.
His son, Flávio, who holds office as a legislator, called for a assembly of his supporters near his father's house to take place on the weekend.
The senator wrote on social media on Friday: "Are you going to fight for your homeland, or see it all from your phone there on your settee? I call on you to battle with us."
He said the gathering would be so backers could offer prayers for his health and for the restoration of democratic rule in our country."
Diplomatic Refuge Fears
Part of the magistrate's determination was the chance of Bolsonaro's "relocation to foreign missions near the dwelling, considering that the probes revealed a record of organizing to ask for protection through a embassy office", a statement said.
The legal document emphasizes that the United States embassy in the federal district, Brasilia, is positioned around approximately 13 kilometers from his dwelling.
Global Responses
Bolsonaro's legal woes have generated frustration from fellow conservative nationalist United States President President Trump, prompting him to implement a fifty percent tax on imports of Brazilian goods.
The former president is being held in a federal law enforcement building in the capital and will undergo a detention review on the next day.
Recent Legal Requests
It was only on the previous day that the former president's lawyers asked the High Court to authorize him to complete his entire prison term under home confinement, with digital surveillance.
They also petitioned that the former president be permitted to exit his dwelling for medical care, saying he needed frequent medical attention for pulmonary infections and other ailments.
Background on Conviction
He was found guilty of heading a scheme aimed at maintaining his control after he failed to win the presidential race to his left-wing rival, Lula.
Supreme Court justices said that he was aware of a scheme which involved plans to kill the current president and his running partner, his vice-presidential candidate, and to detain and kill the presiding judge - the top judicial official who has been managing his judicial proceedings.
The conspiracy was thwarted because it failed to get the endorsement of the military leaders. His successor was sworn in without problem on January 1st, 2023.
But a week later, on the eighth of January, thousands of his followers attacked and damaged government buildings in the federal district, the capital city.
The security forces took action and around 1,500 people were detained.
The magistrates found that the rioters had been incited by him whose plan, they said, was for the Brazilian military to intervene, restore order and return him to office.
At the moment, Bolsonaro's lawyers called the over 27-year sentence "absurdly excessive.
He was also banned from campaigning for office until 2060 - a decade minus two years after the completion of his term.
The ex-leader called the court case a targeted investigation" and said it was aimed at blocking him participating in the next presidential race.
