Bolsonaro taken into custody after being declared a flight risk

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The former Brazilian leader has been detained after authorities found he posed a definite escape threat while under home confinement.

The one-time leader was sentenced of planning a armed takeover in the ninth month and handed more than 27 years in jail, but he was staying under confinement pending court reviews.

High Court Judge Alexandre de Moraes said the decision to arrest the elderly politician was a safety action after fresh information emerged.

This included seeking to disable his electronic bracelet and a summons to a demonstration that could facilitate a potential flight.

Court Filing Details Escape Risks

In a paperwork permitting the detention, the magistrate said intelligence from the facility tracking the former president's confinement suggested the one-time head of state's aim to disable the tracking monitor to secure accomplishment in his escape.

This, it said, would be assisted by the disorder caused by the protest called by his offspring.

His offspring, his son Flávio, who holds office as a congressional representative, called for a meeting of his followers near his father's house to take place on Saturday night.

The senator wrote on online platforms on Friday: "Are you going to fight for your nation, or watch it all from your phone there on your settee? I call on you to struggle with us."

He said the vigil would be so followers could offer prayers for his well-being and for the reestablishment of democratic governance in our country."

Diplomatic Refuge Fears

Part of the judge's decision was the chance of the former president's "relocation to diplomatic missions near the home, considering that the investigations revealed a history of organizing to seek refuge through a consular facility", a declaration said.

The legal document underscores that the US embassy in the national capital, Brazil's capital, is situated around approximately 13 kilometers from Bolsonaro's home.

Global Responses

His judicial problems have generated frustration from fellow conservative nationalist United States President Donald Trump, leading him to impose a half-rate duty on imports of Brazilian goods.

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

Latest Court Petitions

It was only on Friday that the former president's lawyers asked the Top Court to allow him to complete his entire prison term under domestic detention, with tracking devices.

They also requested that the former president be authorized to exit his dwelling for medical care, saying he needed ongoing care for respiratory ailments and other ailments.

Details of Guilty Verdict

He was determined responsible of orchestrating a conspiracy aimed at retaining his authority after he was defeated in the presidential race to his ideological adversary, President Lula.

Supreme Court justices said that he was aware of a plan which included plans to murder his opponent and his vice-presidential running mate, his vice-presidential candidate, and to imprison and murder Justice Moraes - the top judicial official who has been overseeing Bolsonaro's trial.

The scheme was prevented because it couldn't obtain the support of the armed forces officials. His successor was inaugurated without problem on 1 January 2023.

But a seven days after, on 8 January, numerous his followers attacked and damaged government buildings in the capital, Brazil's capital.

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

The justices found that the demonstrators had been provoked by the former president whose plan, they said, was for the national armed forces to step in, reestablish control and bring him back to power.

At the period, Bolsonaro's lawyers called the over 27-year sentence extremely harsh.

He was also barred from seeking elected position until 2060 - eight years later after the end of his sentence.

The one-time head of state called the trial a "witch hunt and said it was aimed at blocking him participating in the 2026 national vote.

James Sanchez
James Sanchez

Automotive journalist and racing enthusiast with over a decade of experience in high-performance vehicle testing.