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The former Brazilian leader has been detained after authorities determined he posed a definite escape threat while under house arrest.

The one-time leader was sentenced of plotting a military coup in September and handed more than over two decades in jail, but he continued under house arrest pending appeals.

Brazilian Supreme Court Justice the presiding justice said the action to imprison the elderly politician was a precautionary step after fresh information came to light.

This encompassed seeking to disable his tracking device and a invitation to a demonstration that could "allow for a possible escape.

Court Filing Details Flight Fears

In a paperwork permitting the detention, Justice Moraes said intelligence from the unit overseeing his home detention suggested the former leader's "intention to break the surveillance device to guarantee victory in his escape.

This, it said, would be made easier by the confusion caused by the protest called by his son.

His son, his son Flávio, who serves as a legislator, called for a assembly of his backers near Bolsonaro's home to take place on Saturday night.

The senator wrote on online platforms on the previous day: Will you battle for your nation, or watch it all from your mobile device there on your settee? I urge you to struggle with us."

He said the demonstration would be so supporters could "pray for his well-being and for the reestablishment of democratic governance in our land."

Foreign Shelter Risks

Part of Justice Moraes's decision was the possibility of the former president's move to foreign missions near the home, considering that the investigations revealed a background of planning to request asylum through a embassy office", a announcement said.

The court filing highlights that the US embassy in the capital, Brasilia, is positioned around 13km from Bolsonaro's home.

Worldwide Consequences

The former president's legal troubles have drawn the ire of fellow conservative nationalist United States President Donald Trump, causing 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 Brasilia and will undergo a custody hearing on the next day.

Recent Legal Requests

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

They also asked that he be allowed to exit his dwelling for medical care, saying he required regular treatment for lung conditions and other health problems.

Background on Conviction

The former president was convicted of orchestrating a plot aimed at maintaining his control after he was defeated in the 2022 election to his ideological adversary, President Lula.

Top judicial officials said that he was aware of a plot which involved plans to kill Lula and his VP candidate, Geraldo Alckmin, and to imprison and murder Alexandre de Moraes - the top judicial official who has been overseeing his judicial proceedings.

The plot was stopped because it couldn't obtain the support of the military leaders. The current president was sworn in without issue on 1 January 2023.

But a following week, on the eighth of January, thousands of his followers invaded and destroyed public facilities in the national capital, Brasília.

The law enforcement stepped in and around approximately 1,500 persons were detained.

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

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

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

The one-time head of state called the court case a "witch hunt and said it was intended to stop him running in the next presidential race.