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Jair Bolsonaro has been arrested after authorities determined he posed a concrete flight risk while under home confinement.

The former head of state was sentenced of orchestrating a military coup in the ninth month and sentenced more than over two decades in jail, but he continued under confinement pending legal challenges.

High Court Judge Alexandre de Moraes said the decision to arrest the 70-year-old politician was a safety action after fresh information were revealed.

This encompassed seeking to disable his tracking device and a invitation to a demonstration that could enable a potential flight.

Judicial Records Show Escape Risks

In a paperwork permitting the arrest, the magistrate said intelligence from the unit overseeing the former president's confinement suggested the ex-president's "intention to break the surveillance device to guarantee victory in his escape.

This, it said, would be "facilitated by the chaos caused by the demonstration called by his son.

His son, Flávio, who holds office as a senator, called for a meeting of his backers near his father's house to take place on the weekend.

Flávio Bolsonaro wrote on social media on the previous day: Will you battle for your country, or observe everything from your smartphone there on your couch? I call on you to fight with us."

He said the vigil would be so followers could seek divine intervention for his health and for the return of democracy in our land."

Foreign Shelter Risks

Part of the magistrate's determination was the chance of his move to foreign missions near the home, considering that the inquiries revealed a background of organizing to ask for protection through a embassy office", a statement said.

The court filing underscores that the American diplomatic mission in the national capital, the capital city, is situated around 13km from Bolsonaro's home.

Global Responses

The former president's legal troubles have provoked anger from fellow populist conservative US President President Trump, prompting him to impose a 50% tariff on Brazilian product imports.

The former president is being held in a Federal Police station in the capital and will have a detention review on the next day.

Recent Judicial Appeals

It was only on last Friday that the ex-leader's attorneys asked the Top Court to authorize him to fulfill his full incarceration period under house arrest, with tracking devices.

They also petitioned that Bolsonaro be allowed to leave his home for medical care, saying he needed frequent medical attention for pulmonary infections and other ailments.

Context of Sentencing

The former president was convicted of leading a scheme aimed at retaining his authority after he was defeated in the 2022 election to his left-wing rival, President Lula.

Top judicial officials said that he was aware of a scheme which involved plans to kill the current president and his VP candidate, Geraldo Alckmin, and to arrest and execute Alexandre de Moraes - the top judicial official who has been managing his judicial proceedings.

The scheme was prevented because it didn't receive the endorsement of the army and air force commanders. Lula was inaugurated without incident on January 1st, 2023.

But a following week, on January 8th, numerous his backers stormed and vandalised government buildings in the capital, Brazil's capital.

The police intervened and around fifteen hundred individuals were detained.

The judges found that the rioters had been encouraged by him whose plan, they said, was for the national armed forces to take action, restore order and return him to office.

At the moment, the legal team called the decades-long sentence unreasonably severe".

He was also barred from seeking elected position until twenty-sixty - eight years later after the conclusion of his imprisonment.

The ex-leader called the court case a political persecution and said it was designed to prevent him running in the 2026 presidential election.