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Jair Bolsonaro has been taken into custody after authorities found he posed a concrete flight risk while under home confinement.

The one-time leader was convicted of planning a military coup in September and handed more than a 27-year term in jail, but he continued under house arrest pending appeals.

Top Judicial Official the presiding justice said the move to detain the elderly politician was a precautionary step after recent developments came to light.

This involved seeking to disable his tracking device and a invitation to a supporters' gathering that could facilitate a potential flight.

Court Filing Details Escape Risks

In a document approving the custody, the magistrate said data from the facility tracking his home detention suggested the ex-president's plan to remove the surveillance device to ensure success in his flight.

This, it said, would be assisted by the confusion caused by the gathering called by his child.

His son, his son Flávio, who holds office as a senator, called for a meeting of his followers near his father's house to take place on the weekend.

His son wrote on digital networks on last Friday: Do you plan to struggle for your homeland, or watch it all from your mobile device there on your couch? I invite you to battle with us."

He said the vigil would be so backers could seek divine intervention for his health and for the restoration of democratic rule in our country."

Foreign Shelter Risks

Part of Justice Moraes's decision was the chance of his move to diplomatic missions near the dwelling, considering that the inquiries revealed a background of arranging to request asylum through a embassy office", a announcement said.

The legal document emphasizes that the United States embassy in the federal district, Brazil's capital, is positioned around 13km from the former president's residence.

International Reactions

Bolsonaro's legal woes have generated frustration from fellow right-wing populist US President Donald Trump, prompting him to impose a fifty percent tax on Brazilian product imports.

Bolsonaro is being detained in a national police facility in Brasilia and will experience a custody hearing on Sunday.

Recent Judicial Appeals

It was only on Friday that the ex-leader's attorneys asked the Top Court to allow him to complete his entire prison term under house arrest, with tracking devices.

They also asked that Bolsonaro be permitted to exit his dwelling for medical care, saying he demanded frequent medical attention for pulmonary infections 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.

Supreme Court justices said that he was aware of a plan which included plans to murder the current president and his VP candidate, Geraldo Alckmin, and to detain and kill Justice Moraes - the top judicial official who has been managing the former president's case.

The conspiracy was thwarted because it couldn't obtain the backing of the military leaders. The current president was inaugurated without issue on January 1st, 2023.

But a following week, on 8 January, numerous Bolsonaro supporters attacked and damaged public facilities in the capital, the capital city.

The law enforcement intervened and around 1,500 people were arrested.

The magistrates found that the rioters had been encouraged by Bolsonaro whose plan, they said, was for the Brazilian military to intervene, restore order and bring him back to power.

At the time, his attorneys called the decades-long sentence unreasonably severe".

He was also banned from campaigning for office until 2060 - eight years later after the completion of his term.

The former president called the trial a "witch hunt and said it was intended to stop him participating in the 2026 presidential election.