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Jair Bolsonaro has been taken into custody after authorities determined he posed a serious risk of fleeing while under house arrest.

The one-time leader was sentenced of plotting a government overthrow in September and given more than 27 years in incarceration, but he remained under house arrest pending appeals.

Brazilian Supreme Court Justice Justice Moraes said the action to imprison the elderly politician was a precautionary step after fresh information emerged.

This encompassed trying to remove his ankle monitor and a invitation to a public vigil that could enable a chance to flee".

Legal Document Reveals Escape Risks

In a paperwork permitting the arrest, Justice Moraes said information from the unit overseeing 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 confusion caused by the gathering called by his son.

His son, Flávio Bolsonaro, who holds office as a congressional representative, called for a gathering of his supporters near the former president's residence to take place on Saturday night.

His son wrote on online platforms on the previous day: "Are you going to fight for your nation, or watch it all from your mobile device there on your settee? I urge you to struggle with us."

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

Embassy Asylum Concerns

Part of the magistrate's determination was the potential of the former president's "relocation to embassies near the dwelling, considering that the investigations revealed a history of arranging to request asylum through a diplomatic representation", a announcement said.

The judicial paperwork underscores that the United States embassy in the federal district, Brazil's capital, is positioned around 13km from the former president's residence.

International Reactions

Bolsonaro's legal woes have generated frustration from fellow right-wing populist US President Trump, prompting him to enact a half-rate duty on goods coming from Brazil.

The former president is being detained in a Federal Police station in the capital and will undergo a custody hearing on the next day.

Latest Court Petitions

It was only on the previous day that the ex-leader's attorneys asked the Supreme Court to allow him to complete his entire prison term under domestic detention, with digital surveillance.

They also asked that he be allowed to leave his home for medical treatment, saying he needed regular treatment for lung conditions and other health problems.

Background on Conviction

He was found guilty of orchestrating a conspiracy aimed at keeping him in power after he failed to win the national vote to his ideological adversary, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.

High Court judges said that he had knowledge of a scheme which included plans to kill his opponent and his running partner, his vice-presidential candidate, and to imprison and murder the presiding judge - the top judicial official who has been presiding over Bolsonaro's trial.

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

But a seven days after, on the eighth of January, numerous his backers attacked and damaged official structures in the capital, Brasília.

The security forces stepped in and around approximately 1,500 persons were detained.

The judges found that the rioters had been encouraged by Bolsonaro whose strategy, they said, was for the Brazilian military to take action, reestablish control and bring him back to power.

At the period, the legal team called the decades-long sentence extremely harsh.

He was also banned from campaigning for office until the year 2060 - eight years later after the end of his sentence.

The ex-leader called the legal proceedings a political persecution and said it was intended to stop him participating in the 2026 national vote.