The former Brazilian president taken into custody after being deemed a risk of fleeing

placeholder news image

The former Brazilian leader has been detained after authorities determined he posed a concrete flight risk while under domestic detention.

The ex-president was convicted of plotting a government overthrow in September and handed more than 27 years in jail, but he continued under home detention pending appeals.

Brazilian Supreme Court Justice the presiding justice said the move to detain the septuagenarian politician was a safety action after fresh information emerged.

This involved trying to remove his ankle monitor and a call for a supporters' gathering that could enable a potential flight.

Legal Document Reveals Escape Concerns

In a filing authorising the arrest, the magistrate said intelligence from the centre monitoring Bolsonaro's house arrest suggested the one-time head of state's plan to remove the electronic ankle bracelet to secure accomplishment in his getaway".

This, it said, would be assisted by the disorder caused by the gathering called by his child.

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

His son wrote on digital networks on the previous day: "Are you going to fight for your nation, or see it all from your phone there on your sofa? I urge you to struggle with us."

He said the gathering would be so supporters could "pray for his health and for the restoration of democratic rule in our land."

Embassy Asylum Concerns

Part of the magistrate's determination was the possibility of his move to diplomatic missions near the dwelling, considering that the probes revealed a background of arranging to seek refuge through a embassy office", a statement said.

The judicial paperwork underscores that the American diplomatic mission in the federal district, the capital city, is situated around 8 miles from the former president's residence.

International Reactions

The former president's legal troubles have generated frustration from fellow conservative nationalist American leader Trump, leading him to impose a 50% tariff on imports of Brazilian goods.

The former president is being held in a federal law enforcement building in the capital and will have a imprisonment assessment on the following day.

Recent Legal Requests

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

They also requested that Bolsonaro be authorized to exit his dwelling for medical care, saying he needed regular treatment for lung conditions and other illnesses.

Background on Conviction

He was found guilty of orchestrating a plot aimed at retaining his authority after he lost the 2022 election to his political opponent, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.

High Court judges said that he had knowledge of a scheme which involved plans to kill the current president and his VP candidate, Geraldo Alckmin, and to detain and kill Alexandre de Moraes - the top judicial official who has been overseeing the former president's case.

The scheme was stopped because it didn't receive the support of the army and air force commanders. Lula was sworn in without problem on January 1st, 2023.

But a following week, on 8 January, thousands of Bolsonaro supporters attacked and damaged public facilities in the capital, Brazil's capital.

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

The judges found that the demonstrators had been provoked by him whose plan, they said, was for the national armed forces to step in, restore order and bring him back to power.

At the period, Bolsonaro's lawyers called the decades-long sentence unreasonably severe".

He was also banned from campaigning for office until 2060 - eight years after the completion of his term.

The former president called the legal proceedings a targeted investigation" and said it was aimed at blocking him participating in the 2026 presidential election.

David Alexander
David Alexander

Elara Vance is an investigative journalist with over a decade of experience covering international affairs and political developments across Europe.