Jair Bolsonaro has been taken into custody after authorities found he posed a concrete flight risk while under domestic detention.
The ex-president was sentenced of orchestrating a military coup in last fall and handed more than 27 years in incarceration, but he was staying under confinement pending legal challenges.
Top Judicial Official Alexandre de Moraes said the move to detain the 70-year-old politician was a safety action after recent developments were revealed.
This encompassed trying to remove his ankle monitor and a summons to a supporters' gathering that could enable a chance to flee".
Court Filing Details Escape Risks
In a filing authorising the detention, the judge said data from the facility tracking the former president's confinement suggested the one-time head of state's aim to disable the electronic ankle bracelet to guarantee victory in his escape.
This, it said, would be "facilitated by the chaos caused by the demonstration called by his child.
His child, his son Flávio, who works as a senator, called for a gathering of his followers near Bolsonaro's home to take place on Saturday night.
Flávio Bolsonaro wrote on online platforms on last Friday: Do you plan to struggle for your country, or see it all from your phone there on your settee? I urge you to fight with us."
He said the vigil would be so supporters could "pray for his health and for the reestablishment of democratic governance in our land."
Foreign Shelter Risks
Part of the judge's decision was the chance of the former president's "relocation to foreign missions near the residence, considering that the probes revealed a record of planning to ask for protection through a consular facility", a statement said.
The judicial paperwork highlights that the US embassy in the federal district, Brazil's capital, is situated around 13km from the former president's residence.
Global Responses
His judicial problems have drawn the ire of fellow conservative nationalist United States President President Trump, prompting him to impose a half-rate duty on Brazilian product imports.
He is being kept in a federal law enforcement building in Brasilia and will have a imprisonment assessment on the following day.
Recent Judicial Appeals
It was only on the previous day that the ex-leader's attorneys asked the Supreme Court to permit him to fulfill his full incarceration period under domestic detention, with electronic monitoring.
They also petitioned that the former president be authorized to leave his home for medical treatment, saying he required frequent medical attention for lung conditions and other ailments.
Details of Guilty Verdict
The former president was found guilty of heading a conspiracy aimed at retaining his authority after he lost the presidential race to his ideological adversary, President Lula.
Top judicial officials said that he knew of a plot which encompassed plans to murder the current president and his running partner, Geraldo Alckmin, and to detain and kill Alexandre de Moraes - the Supreme Court justice who has been overseeing the former president's case.
The scheme was thwarted because it didn't receive the endorsement of the army and air force commanders. The current president was inaugurated without problem on 1 January 2023.
But a week later, on January 8th, numerous his backers attacked and damaged official structures in the capital, Brazil's capital.
The law enforcement stepped in and around approximately 1,500 persons were detained.
The magistrates found that the rioters had been provoked by the former president whose plan, they said, was for the country's army to take action, bring back stability and return him to office.
At the time, the legal team called the 27 years and three months sentence extremely harsh.
He was also banned from running for public office until the year 2060 - eight years later after the end of his sentence.
The ex-leader called the legal proceedings a "witch hunt and said it was aimed at blocking him competing in the next presidential race.
