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Jair Bolsonaro has been detained after authorities concluded he posed a concrete flight risk while under domestic detention.

The one-time leader was convicted of orchestrating a government overthrow in September and given more than a 27-year term in incarceration, but he continued under house arrest pending appeals.

High Court Judge the presiding justice said the move to detain the 70-year-old politician was a preventative measure after recent developments emerged.

This included seeking to disable his electronic bracelet and a summons to a public vigil that could "allow for a chance to flee".

Judicial Records Show Flight Fears

In a filing authorising the detention, the judge said intelligence from the centre monitoring Bolsonaro's house arrest suggested the ex-president's aim to disable the surveillance device to guarantee victory in his flight.

This, it said, would be made easier by the disorder caused by the protest called by his son.

His offspring, Flávio Bolsonaro, who works as a congressional representative, called for a gathering of his followers near his father's house to take place on Saturday night.

The senator wrote on social media on Friday: Will you battle for your nation, or observe everything from your phone there on your sofa? I call on you to struggle with us."

He said the vigil would be so supporters could seek divine intervention for his well-being and for the reestablishment of democratic governance in our nation."

Foreign Shelter Risks

Part of the judge's determination was the potential of his "relocation to embassies near the residence, considering that the inquiries revealed a record of organizing to request asylum through a consular facility", a announcement said.

The legal document emphasizes that the United States embassy in the federal district, Brasilia, is positioned around approximately 13 kilometers from his dwelling.

International Reactions

Bolsonaro's legal woes have provoked anger from fellow populist conservative US President President Trump, prompting him to impose a half-rate duty on imports of Brazilian goods.

The former president is being held in a Federal Police station in Brasilia and will have a detention review on the following day.

Latest Court Petitions

It was only on last Friday that the ex-leader's attorneys asked the Top Court to allow him to fulfill his full incarceration period under domestic detention, with tracking devices.

They also asked that the former president be allowed to depart his residence for medical care, saying he needed regular treatment for respiratory ailments and other ailments.

Details of Guilty Verdict

The former president was found guilty of heading a plot aimed at retaining his authority after he was defeated in the presidential race to his left-wing rival, Lula.

High Court judges said that he was aware of a plot which involved plans to assassinate his opponent and his vice-presidential running mate, Geraldo Alckmin, and to detain and kill Justice Moraes - the top judicial official who has been presiding over Bolsonaro's trial.

The plot was stopped because it didn't receive the backing of the armed forces officials. The current president was took office without incident on 1 January 2023.

But a following week, on the eighth of January, numerous his followers invaded and destroyed government buildings in the national capital, Brazil's capital.

The security forces took action and around 1,500 people were taken into custody.

The judges found that the rioters had been incited by Bolsonaro whose scheme, they said, was for the Brazilian military to step in, restore order and return him to office.

At the period, his attorneys called the decades-long sentence extremely harsh.

He was also barred from campaigning for office until 2060 - a decade minus two years after the end of his sentence.

The former president called the legal proceedings a targeted investigation" and said it was designed to prevent him participating in the 2026 national vote.