The former Brazilian leader has been detained after authorities determined he posed a serious risk of fleeing while under home confinement.
The former head of state was found guilty of planning a government overthrow in September and given more than a 27-year term in incarceration, but he was staying under house arrest pending court reviews.
Top Judicial Official the presiding justice said the action to imprison the elderly politician was a preventative measure after fresh information emerged.
This included trying to remove his tracking device and a summons to a supporters' gathering that could enable a possible escape.
Judicial Records Show Flight Fears
In a document approving the arrest, Justice Moraes said information from the centre monitoring the former president's confinement suggested the former leader's aim to disable the surveillance device to guarantee victory in his flight.
This, it said, would be "facilitated by the chaos caused by the gathering called by his child.
His offspring, his son Flávio, who serves as a senator, called for a gathering of his followers near his father's house to take place on Saturday evening.
The senator wrote on social media on Friday: Will you battle for your country, or observe everything from your phone there on your sofa? I call on you to battle with us."
He said the demonstration would be so supporters could seek divine intervention for his well-being and for the return of democracy in our country."
Foreign Shelter Risks
Part of the judge's decision was the chance of his "relocation to diplomatic missions near the home, considering that the inquiries revealed a record of planning to seek refuge through a consular facility", a declaration said.
The court filing emphasizes that the US embassy in the national capital, the capital city, is located around 8 miles from his dwelling.
Worldwide Consequences
The former president's legal troubles have provoked anger from fellow populist conservative US President Trump, prompting him to implement a 50% tariff on goods coming from Brazil.
He is being kept in a Federal Police station in Brasilia and will undergo a imprisonment assessment on the following day.
Recent Legal Requests
It was only on Friday that the former president's lawyers asked the Top Court to authorize him to fulfill his full incarceration period under home confinement, with digital surveillance.
They also requested that he be authorized to leave his home for medical care, saying he required frequent medical attention for respiratory ailments and other illnesses.
Context of Sentencing
He was determined responsible of heading a plot aimed at keeping him in power after he failed to win the national vote to his ideological adversary, Lula.
Top judicial officials said that he knew of a plot which encompassed plans to assassinate his opponent and his VP candidate, Geraldo Alckmin, and to imprison and murder the presiding judge - the High Court judge who has been overseeing the former president's case.
The scheme was thwarted because it didn't receive the backing of the armed forces officials. His successor was inaugurated without problem on the first day of 2023.
But a seven days after, on 8 January, many Bolsonaro supporters stormed and vandalised public facilities in the capital, Brazil's capital.
The law enforcement stepped in and around approximately 1,500 persons were arrested.
The judges found that the demonstrators had been encouraged by the former president whose strategy, they said, was for the national armed forces to take action, restore order and return him to office.
At the time, his attorneys called the over 27-year sentence "absurdly excessive.
He was also prohibited from campaigning for office until 2060 - eight years later after the end of his sentence.
The one-time head of state called the court case a political persecution and said it was aimed at blocking him running in the 2026 national vote.
