The former Brazilian president arrested after being declared a flight risk

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Bolsonaro has been taken into custody after authorities determined he posed a concrete flight risk while under home confinement.

The former head of state was found guilty of planning a military coup in the ninth month and given more than over two decades in prison, but he continued under confinement pending court reviews.

Top Judicial Official Justice Moraes said the decision to arrest the septuagenarian politician was a safety action after recent developments emerged.

This encompassed trying to remove his ankle monitor and a call for a supporters' gathering that could facilitate a chance to flee".

Legal Document Reveals Escape Risks

In a paperwork permitting the custody, Justice Moraes said information from the facility tracking the former president's confinement suggested the one-time head of state's "intention to break the surveillance device to guarantee victory in his escape.

This, it said, would be made easier by the disorder caused by the gathering called by his offspring.

His child, Flávio Bolsonaro, who serves as a senator, called for a gathering of his backers near the former president's residence to take place on Saturday night.

Flávio Bolsonaro wrote on online platforms on the previous day: "Are you going to fight for your homeland, or see it all from your smartphone there on your sofa? I invite you to battle with us."

He said the vigil would be so backers could "pray for his health and for the restoration of democratic rule in our nation."

Diplomatic Refuge Fears

Part of the magistrate's determination was the potential of Bolsonaro's "relocation to embassies near the residence, considering that the inquiries revealed a history of arranging to ask for protection through a consular facility", a announcement said.

The judicial paperwork emphasizes that the American diplomatic mission in the national capital, the capital city, is situated around approximately 13 kilometers from Bolsonaro's home.

Global Responses

The former president's legal troubles have generated frustration from fellow right-wing populist United States President Trump, leading him to implement a fifty percent tax on goods coming from Brazil.

He is being held in a Federal Police station in Brasilia and will have a imprisonment assessment on the following day.

Recent Judicial Appeals

It was only on last Friday that the ex-leader's attorneys asked the Supreme Court to permit him to complete his entire prison term under home confinement, with tracking devices.

They also asked that he be permitted to exit his dwelling for healthcare, saying he required regular treatment for lung conditions and other illnesses.

Background on Conviction

The former president was found guilty of orchestrating a conspiracy aimed at maintaining his control after he failed to win the 2022 election to his political opponent, Lula.

Supreme Court justices said that he had knowledge of a plan which involved plans to assassinate the current president and his running partner, Geraldo Alckmin, and to detain and kill Justice Moraes - the High Court judge who has been overseeing Bolsonaro's trial.

The scheme was prevented because it couldn't obtain the backing of the army and air force commanders. The current president was inaugurated without issue on January 1st, 2023.

But a following week, on 8 January, numerous his backers attacked and damaged official structures in the federal district, Brasília.

The police took action and around fifteen hundred individuals were detained.

The justices found that the protesters had been encouraged by him whose scheme, they said, was for the country's army to step in, bring back stability and bring him back to power.

At the time, his attorneys called the over 27-year sentence extremely harsh.

He was also barred from running for public office until 2060 - a decade minus two years after the conclusion of his imprisonment.

The one-time head of state called the legal proceedings a targeted investigation" and said it was intended to stop him running in the 2026 presidential election.

Mary Williams
Mary Williams

A seasoned journalist with over a decade of experience covering international affairs and investigative reporting across multiple continents.