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Jair Bolsonaro has been detained after authorities found he posed a serious risk of fleeing while under domestic detention.

The one-time leader was found guilty of orchestrating a government overthrow in September and sentenced more than 27 years in jail, but he continued under home detention pending court reviews.

Brazilian Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes said the move to detain the elderly politician was a precautionary step after "new facts" were revealed.

This included attempting to break his tracking device and a invitation to a demonstration that could facilitate a possible escape.

Court Filing Details Flight Fears

In a filing authorising the arrest, the magistrate said intelligence from the centre monitoring his home detention suggested the one-time head of state's aim to disable 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 child, Flávio Bolsonaro, who works as a senator, called for a gathering of his backers near the former president's residence to take place on Saturday evening.

The senator wrote on social media on the previous day: Do you plan to struggle for your homeland, or observe everything from your smartphone there on your couch? I urge you to fight with us."

He said the gathering would be so followers could offer prayers for his physical condition and for the return of democracy in our nation."

Diplomatic Refuge Fears

Part of the magistrate's decision was the potential of Bolsonaro's move to diplomatic missions near the residence, considering that the inquiries revealed a record of planning to ask for protection through a embassy office", a announcement said.

The court filing highlights that the American diplomatic mission in the national capital, Brasilia, is positioned around 8 miles from Bolsonaro's home.

International Reactions

The former president's legal troubles have generated frustration from fellow right-wing populist United States President President Trump, causing him to enact a half-rate duty on goods coming from Brazil.

He is being held in a Federal Police station in Brazil's capital city and will have a imprisonment assessment on the next day.

Recent Legal Requests

It was only on last Friday that the former president's lawyers asked the Top Court to allow him to fulfill his full incarceration period under home confinement, with digital surveillance.

They also petitioned that the former president be allowed to exit his dwelling for medical care, saying he demanded frequent medical attention for lung conditions and other ailments.

Details of Guilty Verdict

He was determined responsible of heading a plot aimed at retaining his authority after he was defeated in the 2022 election to his political opponent, President Lula.

Top judicial officials said that he had knowledge of a plan which encompassed plans to murder his opponent and his VP candidate, his vice-presidential candidate, and to imprison and murder the presiding judge - the Supreme Court justice who has been presiding over Bolsonaro's trial.

The conspiracy was stopped because it didn't receive the support of the military leaders. The current president was inaugurated without problem on 1 January 2023.

But a following week, on 8 January, numerous his backers stormed and vandalised official structures in the national capital, Brasília.

The law enforcement took action and around 1,500 people were taken into custody.

The judges found that the protesters had been incited by the former president whose plan, 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 unreasonably severe".

He was also barred from campaigning for office until twenty-sixty - a decade minus two years after the end of his sentence.

The one-time head of state called the trial a targeted investigation" and said it was aimed at blocking him running in the next presidential race.