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Jair Bolsonaro has been arrested after authorities concluded he posed a serious risk of fleeing while under domestic detention.

The one-time leader was convicted of planning a military coup in the ninth month and sentenced more than over two decades in jail, but he continued under confinement pending legal challenges.

High Court Judge the presiding justice said the decision to arrest the elderly politician was a preventative measure after "new facts" emerged.

This involved seeking to disable his tracking device and a call for a demonstration that could facilitate a chance to flee".

Judicial Records Show Escape Concerns

In a document approving the custody, the judge said information from the facility tracking Bolsonaro's house arrest suggested the ex-president's "intention to break the electronic ankle bracelet to secure accomplishment in his escape.

This, it said, would be "facilitated by the confusion caused by the protest called by his child.

His son, Flávio Bolsonaro, who serves as a legislator, called for a gathering of his supporters near his father's house to take place on Saturday evening.

The senator wrote on online platforms on the previous day: Do you plan to struggle for your country, or see it all from your phone there on your couch? I urge you to fight with us."

He said the demonstration would be so supporters could offer prayers for his health and for the return of democracy in our nation."

Embassy Asylum Concerns

Part of Justice Moraes's determination was the chance of Bolsonaro's move to embassies near the residence, considering that the probes revealed a background of planning to ask for protection through a diplomatic representation", a announcement said.

The court filing highlights that the United States embassy in the capital, Brazil's capital, is located around 13km from the former president's residence.

Global Responses

His judicial problems have generated frustration from fellow populist conservative US President Trump, causing him to implement a fifty percent tax on goods coming from Brazil.

Bolsonaro is being detained in a Federal Police station in the capital and will undergo a detention review on the next day.

Recent Judicial Appeals

It was only on Friday that the his legal team asked the High Court to allow him to serve his whole jail sentence under domestic detention, with electronic monitoring.

They also asked that the former president be allowed to exit his dwelling for medical treatment, saying he needed ongoing care for pulmonary infections and other ailments.

Background on Conviction

He was determined responsible of orchestrating a scheme aimed at retaining his authority after he was defeated in the 2022 election to his ideological adversary, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.

High Court judges said that he was aware of a plan which involved plans to assassinate his opponent and his running partner, Geraldo Alckmin, and to detain and kill Justice Moraes - the top judicial official who has been overseeing his judicial proceedings.

The plot was stopped because it failed to get the backing of the military leaders. His successor was inaugurated without problem on January 1st, 2023.

But a week later, on January 8th, numerous Bolsonaro supporters attacked and damaged government buildings in the federal district, Brasília.

The security forces took action and around 1,500 people were arrested.

The judges found that the demonstrators had been encouraged by Bolsonaro whose scheme, they said, was for the Brazilian military to take action, reestablish control and bring him back to power.

At the period, the legal team called the 27 years and three months sentence "absurdly excessive.

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

The ex-leader called the trial a "witch hunt and said it was intended to stop him competing in the 2026 national vote.