The former Brazilian president arrested after being deemed a flight risk

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

The former head of state was convicted of orchestrating a military coup in the ninth month and given more than 27 years in prison, but he was staying under home detention pending legal challenges.

High Court Judge Justice Moraes said the action to imprison the elderly politician was a precautionary step after fresh information emerged.

This encompassed trying to remove his tracking device and a invitation to a demonstration that could enable a possible escape.

Court Filing Details Escape Concerns

In a filing authorising the arrest, the judge said intelligence from the centre monitoring Bolsonaro's house arrest suggested the ex-president's aim to disable the electronic ankle bracelet to secure accomplishment in his flight.

This, it said, would be made easier by the chaos caused by the demonstration called by his son.

His son, his son Flávio, who holds office as a congressional representative, called for a assembly of his followers near Bolsonaro's home to take place on Saturday night.

The senator wrote on online platforms on last Friday: Will you battle for your country, or observe everything from your phone there on your couch? I invite you to battle with us."

He said the vigil would be so supporters could "pray for his health and for the reestablishment of democratic governance in our country."

Embassy Asylum Concerns

Part of Justice Moraes's ruling was the potential of Bolsonaro's "relocation to embassies near the residence, considering that the investigations revealed a record of organizing to ask for protection through a consular facility", a announcement said.

The legal document highlights that the United States embassy in the federal district, the capital city, is located around 13km from Bolsonaro's home.

Global Responses

The former president's legal troubles have provoked anger from fellow conservative nationalist United States President Trump, causing him to implement a fifty percent tax on goods coming from Brazil.

He is being detained in a Federal Police station in the capital and will experience a custody hearing on Sunday.

Latest Court Petitions

It was only on the previous day that the his legal team asked the Supreme Court to allow him to fulfill his full incarceration period under domestic detention, with electronic monitoring.

They also petitioned that he be authorized to leave his home for healthcare, saying he demanded regular treatment for respiratory ailments and other illnesses.

Details of Guilty Verdict

Bolsonaro was found guilty of leading a plot aimed at retaining his authority after he was defeated in the 2022 election to his left-wing rival, President Lula.

Supreme Court justices said that he had knowledge of a scheme which involved plans to murder his opponent and his vice-presidential running mate, Geraldo Alckmin, and to arrest and execute Justice Moraes - the top judicial official who has been overseeing the former president's case.

The plot was thwarted because it failed to get the support of the army and air force commanders. The current president was sworn in without incident on the first day of 2023.

But a week later, on the eighth of January, thousands of Bolsonaro supporters stormed and vandalised public facilities in the national capital, Brasília.

The law enforcement took action and around 1,500 people were taken into custody.

The judges found that the demonstrators had been encouraged by the former president whose plan, they said, was for the national armed forces to intervene, bring back stability and bring him back to power.

At the period, his attorneys called the decades-long sentence "absurdly excessive.

He was also barred from running for public office until the year 2060 - eight years later after the conclusion of his imprisonment.

The former president called the court case a targeted investigation" and said it was intended to stop him participating in the next presidential race.

Nicholas Gonzales
Nicholas Gonzales

Elena is a Dutch journalist and cultural analyst with a passion for uncovering stories that bridge communities and spark meaningful dialogue.