The former Brazilian president arrested after being declared a risk of fleeing

placeholder news image

Bolsonaro has been detained after authorities found he posed a definite escape threat while under domestic detention.

The ex-president was sentenced of planning a military coup in last fall and handed more than 27 years in incarceration, but he was staying under house arrest pending appeals.

Top Judicial Official Justice Moraes said the move to detain the 70-year-old politician was a preventative measure after "new facts" emerged.

This involved trying to remove his electronic bracelet and a call for a demonstration that could facilitate a possible escape.

Court Filing Details Escape Concerns

In a document approving the arrest, Justice Moraes said data from the facility tracking Bolsonaro's house arrest suggested the one-time head of state's aim to disable the tracking monitor to guarantee victory in his escape.

This, it said, would be made easier by the disorder caused by the demonstration called by his child.

His son, Flávio Bolsonaro, who works as a congressional representative, called for a assembly of his followers near the former president's residence to take place on Saturday night.

Flávio Bolsonaro wrote on online platforms on last Friday: Will you battle for your homeland, or see it all from your smartphone there on your settee? I urge you to struggle with us."

He said the demonstration would be so followers could "pray for his health and for the reestablishment of democratic governance in our nation."

Embassy Asylum Concerns

Part of the judge's decision was the possibility of the former president's "relocation to embassies near the home, considering that the probes revealed a background of arranging to request asylum through a embassy office", a declaration said.

The legal document emphasizes that the US embassy in the capital, Brasilia, is positioned around 8 miles from the former president's residence.

Global Responses

Bolsonaro's legal woes have drawn the ire of fellow conservative nationalist United States President Donald Trump, prompting him to implement a half-rate duty on goods coming from Brazil.

Bolsonaro is being kept in a federal law enforcement building in Brasilia and will have a detention review on the following day.

Latest Court Petitions

It was only on the previous day that the former president's lawyers asked the High Court to permit him to complete his entire prison term under house arrest, with digital surveillance.

They also petitioned that he be authorized to depart his residence for medical care, saying he required regular treatment for lung conditions and other health problems.

Background on Conviction

He was found guilty of heading a plot aimed at maintaining his control after he was defeated in the national vote to his left-wing rival, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.

Supreme Court justices said that he knew of a plan which involved plans to assassinate the current president and his VP candidate, his vice-presidential candidate, and to detain and kill Justice Moraes - the top judicial official who has been presiding over his judicial proceedings.

The scheme was prevented because it couldn't obtain the support of the armed forces officials. The current president was inaugurated without incident on the first day of 2023.

But a following week, on 8 January, numerous his backers invaded and destroyed public facilities in the capital, the capital city.

The police stepped in and around fifteen hundred individuals were arrested.

The magistrates found that the demonstrators had been encouraged by Bolsonaro whose plan, they said, was for the Brazilian military to step in, bring back stability and return him to office.

At the moment, his attorneys called the over 27-year sentence "absurdly excessive.

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

The former president called the legal proceedings a targeted investigation" and said it was designed to prevent him running in the next presidential race.

Donna Saunders
Donna Saunders

A meteorologist and tech enthusiast with a passion for making complex topics accessible and engaging for readers worldwide.