🔗 Share this article Bolsonaro arrested after being deemed a risk of fleeing The former Brazilian leader has been detained after authorities determined he posed a concrete flight risk while under house arrest. The ex-president was found guilty of orchestrating a armed takeover in the ninth month and given more than 27 years in prison, but he continued under confinement pending legal challenges. Brazilian Supreme Court Justice the presiding justice said the move to detain the 70-year-old politician was a safety action after fresh information were revealed. This included trying to remove his tracking device and a invitation to a demonstration that could facilitate a possible escape. Judicial Records Show Escape Concerns In a paperwork permitting the custody, the judge said intelligence from the unit overseeing his home detention suggested the ex-president's "intention to break the electronic ankle bracelet to ensure success in his escape. This, it said, would be made easier by the confusion caused by the protest called by his son. His child, Flávio, who works as a legislator, called for a meeting of his followers near the former president's residence to take place on the weekend. Flávio Bolsonaro wrote on social media on the previous day: "Are you going to fight for your nation, or watch it all from your smartphone there on your settee? I urge you to battle with us." He said the vigil would be so backers could seek divine intervention for his well-being and for the return of democracy in our nation." Foreign Shelter Risks Part of the judge's ruling was the chance of Bolsonaro's move to foreign missions near the residence, considering that the inquiries revealed a background of planning to seek refuge through a embassy office", a announcement said. The judicial paperwork underscores that the US embassy in the federal district, Brasilia, is positioned around approximately 13 kilometers from Bolsonaro's home. Global Responses Bolsonaro's legal woes have drawn the ire of fellow right-wing populist American leader President Trump, causing him to implement a 50% tariff on Brazilian product imports. Bolsonaro is being kept in a Federal Police station in Brasilia and will have a detention review on the following day. Latest Court Petitions It was only on the previous day that the former president's lawyers asked the Supreme Court to allow him to fulfill his full incarceration period under domestic detention, with digital surveillance. They also petitioned that Bolsonaro be allowed to depart his residence for healthcare, saying he required regular treatment for lung conditions and other illnesses. Background on Conviction The former president was determined responsible of orchestrating a plot aimed at maintaining his control after he failed to win the 2022 election to his left-wing rival, President Lula. High Court judges said that he knew of a plot which included plans to kill Lula and his running partner, Geraldo Alckmin, and to arrest and execute Justice Moraes - the Supreme Court justice who has been overseeing the former president's case. The scheme was thwarted because it failed to get the support of the armed forces officials. The current president was inaugurated without issue on January 1st, 2023. But a seven days after, on the eighth of January, many Bolsonaro supporters stormed and vandalised official structures in the national capital, Brazil's capital. The police stepped in and around approximately 1,500 persons were detained. The magistrates found that the demonstrators had been provoked by him whose plan, they said, was for the national armed forces to step in, bring back stability and return him to office. At the time, Bolsonaro's lawyers called the over 27-year sentence unreasonably severe". He was also banned from campaigning for office until 2060 - eight years after the conclusion of his imprisonment. The former president called the legal proceedings a targeted investigation" and said it was designed to prevent him participating in the 2026 national vote.