🔗 Share this article

Bolsonaro has been arrested after authorities determined he posed a definite escape threat while under house arrest.

The ex-president was found guilty of planning a government overthrow in September and sentenced more than over two decades in incarceration, but he was staying under confinement pending court reviews.

High Court Judge Justice Moraes said the decision to arrest the 70-year-old politician was a precautionary step after recent developments were revealed.

This included attempting to break his electronic bracelet and a invitation to a public vigil that could "allow for a chance to flee".

Court Filing Details Escape Risks

In a paperwork permitting the custody, the magistrate said intelligence from the centre monitoring the former president's confinement suggested the ex-president's plan to remove the electronic ankle bracelet to guarantee victory in his escape.

This, it said, would be made easier by the confusion caused by the protest called by his child.

His son, Flávio, who works as a senator, called for a meeting of his supporters near the former president's residence to take place on the weekend.

The senator wrote on online platforms on the previous day: Do you plan to struggle for your nation, or watch it all from your smartphone there on your sofa? I invite you to struggle with us."

He said the vigil would be so backers could offer prayers for his physical condition and for the restoration of democratic rule in our land."

Embassy Asylum Concerns

Part of the magistrate's ruling was the potential of his move to foreign missions near the home, considering that the inquiries revealed a history of arranging to ask for protection through a diplomatic representation", a statement said.

The judicial paperwork underscores that the US embassy in the capital, Brazil's capital, is situated around approximately 13 kilometers from his dwelling.

Global Responses

His judicial problems have provoked anger from fellow right-wing populist United States President President Trump, prompting him to enact a 50% tariff on goods coming from Brazil.

The former president is being detained in a national police facility in Brazil's capital city and will experience a detention review on Sunday.

Recent Judicial Appeals

It was only on the previous day that the former president's lawyers asked the High Court to permit him to complete his entire prison term under domestic detention, with digital surveillance.

They also petitioned that Bolsonaro be allowed to leave his home for medical care, saying he demanded ongoing care for respiratory ailments and other ailments.

Details of Guilty Verdict

He was convicted of leading a plot aimed at maintaining his control after he failed to win the national vote to his ideological adversary, Lula.

Top judicial officials said that he knew of a plot which included plans to assassinate his opponent and his running partner, Alckmin, and to arrest and execute the presiding judge - the Supreme Court justice who has been overseeing Bolsonaro's trial.

The conspiracy was prevented because it didn't receive the backing of the army and air force commanders. The current president was inaugurated without incident on January 1st, 2023.

But a seven days after, on January 8th, numerous his backers stormed and vandalised public facilities in the federal district, Brasília.

The security forces stepped in and around 1,500 people were taken into custody.

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

At the time, the legal team called the 27 years and three months sentence "absurdly excessive.

He was also prohibited from campaigning for office until the year 2060 - a decade minus two years after the conclusion of his imprisonment.

The former president called the trial a political persecution and said it was designed to prevent him participating in the 2026 national vote.