The former Brazilian president arrested after being declared a flight risk

placeholder news image

Bolsonaro has been taken into custody after authorities concluded he posed a serious risk of fleeing while under domestic detention.

The former head of state was sentenced of planning a armed takeover in last fall and given more than a 27-year term in incarceration, but he remained under house arrest pending legal challenges.

Top Judicial Official the presiding justice said the move to detain the 70-year-old politician was a precautionary step after "new facts" came to light.

This involved trying to remove his tracking device and a summons to a demonstration that could "allow for a potential flight.

Judicial Records Show Escape Concerns

In a paperwork permitting the detention, the judge said intelligence from the facility tracking his home detention suggested the ex-president's plan to remove the tracking monitor to ensure success in his flight.

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

His son, Flávio, who works as a senator, called for a assembly of his followers near his father's house to take place on Saturday night.

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

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

Foreign Shelter Risks

Part of Justice Moraes's ruling was the potential of the former president's transfer to embassies near the dwelling, considering that the investigations revealed a background of organizing to seek refuge through a consular facility", a announcement said.

The legal document highlights that the US embassy in the federal district, Brasilia, is located around 13km from Bolsonaro's home.

International Reactions

His judicial problems have generated frustration from fellow conservative nationalist United States President Trump, causing him to implement a half-rate duty on goods coming from Brazil.

The former president is being held in a Federal Police station in Brazil's capital city and will undergo a imprisonment assessment on the following day.

Latest Court Petitions

It was only on the previous day that the his legal team asked the Supreme Court to allow him to complete his entire prison term under domestic detention, with electronic monitoring.

They also requested that the former president be authorized to depart his residence for medical treatment, saying he needed regular treatment for pulmonary infections and other illnesses.

Background on Conviction

The former president was determined responsible of leading a scheme aimed at retaining his authority after he lost the national vote to his political opponent, Lula.

Top judicial officials said that he had knowledge of a plan which involved plans to kill the current president and his running partner, Alckmin, and to imprison and murder Alexandre de Moraes - the Supreme Court justice who has been managing his judicial proceedings.

The plot was thwarted because it couldn't obtain the endorsement of the military leaders. His successor was inaugurated without issue on 1 January 2023.

But a seven days after, on the eighth of January, many his followers invaded and destroyed public facilities in the federal district, the capital city.

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

The justices found that the demonstrators had been encouraged by the former president whose plan, they said, was for the country's army to take action, restore order and return him to office.

At the moment, his attorneys called the over 27-year sentence extremely harsh.

He was also barred from campaigning for office until twenty-sixty - eight years later after the end of his sentence.

The former president called the trial a "witch hunt and said it was designed to prevent him running in the 2026 national vote.

Omar Brown
Omar Brown

A seasoned journalist with a passion for storytelling and in-depth analysis of current events and cultural trends.