Jair Bolsonaro detained after being deemed a flight risk
Jair Bolsonaro has been detained after authorities determined he posed a definite escape threat while under house arrest.
The one-time leader was found guilty of planning a government overthrow in the ninth month and sentenced more than a 27-year term in jail, but he remained under confinement pending legal challenges.
Brazilian Supreme Court Justice Justice Moraes said the action to imprison the 70-year-old politician was a preventative measure after "new facts" came to light.
This encompassed seeking to disable his ankle monitor and a call for a demonstration that could enable a possible escape.
Legal Document Reveals Escape Concerns
In a document approving the detention, the judge said information from the facility tracking Bolsonaro's house arrest suggested the one-time head of state's aim to disable the tracking monitor to guarantee victory in his escape.
This, it said, would be "facilitated by the chaos caused by the demonstration called by his offspring.
His child, Flávio, who serves as a congressional representative, called for a meeting of his backers near Bolsonaro's home to take place on Saturday night.
The senator wrote on social media on last Friday: Do you plan to struggle for your homeland, or watch it all from your smartphone there on your sofa? I urge you to battle with us."
He said the demonstration would be so supporters could offer prayers for his well-being and for the restoration of democratic rule in our country."
Foreign Shelter Risks
Part of Justice Moraes's ruling was the potential of the former president's "relocation to foreign missions near the home, considering that the investigations revealed a background of arranging to request asylum through a diplomatic representation", a statement said.
The legal document underscores that the United States embassy in the capital, the capital city, is located around approximately 13 kilometers from his dwelling.
Global Responses
Bolsonaro's legal woes have drawn the ire of fellow right-wing populist United States President Donald Trump, causing him to enact a half-rate duty on Brazilian product imports.
Bolsonaro is being held in a federal law enforcement building in Brasilia and will undergo a imprisonment assessment on the following day.
Recent Legal Requests
It was only on the previous day that the ex-leader's attorneys asked the Top Court to authorize him to serve his whole jail sentence under house arrest, with tracking devices.
They also petitioned that the former president be authorized to exit his dwelling for healthcare, saying he demanded regular treatment for lung conditions and other health problems.
Background on Conviction
The former president was found guilty of heading a plot aimed at retaining his authority after he was defeated in the presidential race to his ideological adversary, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.
Top judicial officials said that he was aware of a scheme which included plans to kill the current president and his vice-presidential running mate, Geraldo Alckmin, and to detain and kill the presiding judge - the High Court judge who has been managing his judicial proceedings.
The plot was thwarted because it couldn't obtain the backing of the armed forces officials. His successor was sworn in without incident on the first day of 2023.
But a following week, on the eighth of January, thousands of Bolsonaro supporters attacked and damaged public facilities in the capital, Brazil's capital.
The security forces intervened and around approximately 1,500 persons were taken into custody.
The magistrates found that the rioters had been encouraged by Bolsonaro whose scheme, they said, was for the Brazilian military to step in, restore order and reinstate his authority.
At the moment, his attorneys called the decades-long sentence "absurdly excessive.
He was also barred from running for public office until the year 2060 - eight years later after the completion of his term.
The ex-leader called the legal proceedings a targeted investigation" and said it was intended to stop him participating in the 2026 presidential election.