Jair Bolsonaro has been detained after authorities found he posed a concrete flight risk while under house arrest.
The ex-president was convicted of plotting a armed takeover in last fall and handed more than over two decades in incarceration, but he continued under confinement pending appeals.
High Court Judge Justice Moraes said the decision to arrest the 70-year-old politician was a precautionary step after fresh information came to light.
This included attempting to break his ankle monitor and a summons to a supporters' gathering that could enable a possible escape.
Court Filing Details Escape Concerns
In a document approving the detention, the judge said intelligence from the centre monitoring Bolsonaro's house arrest suggested the one-time head of state's plan to remove the surveillance device to secure accomplishment in his flight.
This, it said, would be "facilitated by the chaos caused by the protest called by his son.
His son, his son Flávio, who serves as a senator, called for a meeting of his supporters near his father's house to take place on Saturday evening.
The senator wrote on social media on last Friday: Do you plan to struggle for your country, or see it all from your smartphone there on your sofa? I call on you to battle with us."
He said the vigil would be so followers could "pray for his physical condition and for the restoration of democratic rule in our land."
Embassy Asylum Concerns
Part of the magistrate's determination was the potential of the former president's "relocation to diplomatic missions near the residence, considering that the inquiries revealed a record of organizing to request asylum through a consular facility", a statement said.
The judicial paperwork highlights that the US embassy in the capital, the capital city, is positioned around approximately 13 kilometers from the former president's residence.
International Reactions
Bolsonaro's legal woes have generated frustration from fellow right-wing populist US President Donald Trump, prompting him to implement a 50% tariff on goods coming from Brazil.
Bolsonaro is being kept in a national police facility in the capital and will have a detention review on the next day.
Recent Legal Requests
It was only on Friday that the former president's lawyers asked the High Court to authorize him to complete his entire prison term under house arrest, with digital surveillance.
They also requested that Bolsonaro be allowed to depart his residence for medical treatment, saying he demanded regular treatment for pulmonary infections and other health problems.
Details of Guilty Verdict
Bolsonaro was found guilty of heading a plot aimed at keeping him in power after he failed to win the 2022 election to his ideological adversary, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.
Supreme Court justices said that he knew of a plot which involved plans to assassinate his opponent and his vice-presidential running mate, his vice-presidential candidate, and to arrest and execute the presiding judge - the High Court judge who has been presiding over his judicial proceedings.
The plot was stopped because it couldn't obtain the endorsement of the military leaders. Lula was sworn in without issue on 1 January 2023.
But a following week, on January 8th, many his backers stormed and vandalised government buildings in the national capital, Brasília.
The law enforcement took action and around 1,500 people were taken into custody.
The magistrates found that the rioters had been incited by Bolsonaro whose plan, they said, was for the country's army to intervene, bring back stability and bring him back to power.
At the moment, the legal team called the over 27-year sentence extremely harsh.
He was also prohibited from running for public office until 2060 - eight years later after the completion of his term.
The former president called the court case a political persecution and said it was aimed at blocking him competing in the 2026 presidential election.