Jair Bolsonaro has been arrested after authorities concluded he posed a concrete flight risk while under home confinement.
The one-time leader was convicted of planning a military coup in the ninth month and given more than 27 years in incarceration, but he was staying under house arrest pending appeals.
Brazilian Supreme Court Justice the presiding justice said the action to imprison the 70-year-old politician was a preventative measure after fresh information came to light.
This encompassed seeking to disable his tracking device and a invitation to a supporters' gathering that could "allow for a chance to flee".
Court Filing Details Escape Risks
In a paperwork permitting the detention, Justice Moraes said intelligence from the centre monitoring his home detention suggested the ex-president's aim to disable the surveillance device to ensure success in his getaway".
This, it said, would be assisted by the chaos caused by the protest called by his offspring.
His offspring, Flávio Bolsonaro, who works as a legislator, called for a assembly of his backers near the former president's residence to take place on Saturday evening.
His son wrote on digital networks on Friday: Do you plan to struggle for your country, or watch it all from your phone there on your sofa? I invite you to battle with us."
He said the demonstration would be so supporters could seek divine intervention for his well-being and for the reestablishment of democratic governance in our country."
Diplomatic Refuge Fears
Part of the magistrate's ruling was the potential of his "relocation to foreign missions near the dwelling, considering that the probes revealed a background of organizing to request asylum through a consular facility", a announcement said.
The legal document underscores that the American diplomatic mission in the federal district, Brasilia, is situated around 13km from Bolsonaro's home.
Worldwide Consequences
His judicial problems have drawn the ire of fellow right-wing populist US President President Trump, prompting him to enact a fifty percent tax on imports of Brazilian goods.
He is being detained in a federal law enforcement building in Brazil's capital city and will experience a custody hearing on Sunday.
Recent Legal Requests
It was only on Friday that the his legal team asked the Top Court to authorize him to complete his entire prison term under house arrest, with tracking devices.
They also asked that he be authorized to leave his home for healthcare, saying he demanded frequent medical attention for pulmonary infections and other ailments.
Background on Conviction
The former president was convicted of leading a conspiracy aimed at retaining his authority after he lost the national vote to his ideological adversary, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.
High Court judges said that he knew of a plot which included plans to assassinate Lula and his VP candidate, Alckmin, and to imprison and murder Justice Moraes - the Supreme Court justice who has been presiding over his judicial proceedings.
The scheme was thwarted because it failed to get the endorsement of the military leaders. The current president was sworn in without problem on 1 January 2023.
But a seven days after, on 8 January, many his backers invaded and destroyed public facilities in the capital, Brazil's capital.
The police intervened and around fifteen hundred individuals were arrested.
The justices found that the rioters had been encouraged by Bolsonaro whose strategy, they said, was for the country's army to take action, bring back stability and bring him back to power.
At the moment, his attorneys called the decades-long sentence "absurdly excessive.
He was also barred from campaigning for office until the year 2060 - a decade minus two years after the end of his sentence.
The former president called the court case a targeted investigation" and said it was intended to stop him participating in the next presidential race.
