🔗 Share this article

The former Brazilian leader has been taken into custody after authorities determined he posed a serious risk of fleeing while under home confinement.

The one-time leader was sentenced of orchestrating a military coup in September and sentenced more than 27 years in prison, but he continued under house arrest pending legal challenges.

Top Judicial Official Justice Moraes said the move to detain the elderly politician was a safety action after "new facts" emerged.

This encompassed attempting to break his tracking device and a summons to a supporters' gathering that could enable a potential flight.

Legal Document Reveals Escape Risks

In a paperwork permitting the detention, the magistrate said data from the facility tracking the former president's confinement suggested the one-time head of state's aim to disable the surveillance device to guarantee victory in his escape.

This, it said, would be "facilitated by the disorder caused by the demonstration called by his son.

His child, Flávio, who serves as a senator, called for a assembly of his followers near the former president's residence to take place on Saturday evening.

Flávio Bolsonaro wrote on online platforms on last Friday: Do you plan to struggle for your nation, or observe everything from your phone there on your couch? I call on you to struggle with us."

He said the demonstration would be so backers could offer prayers for his physical condition and for the restoration of democratic rule in our country."

Diplomatic Refuge Fears

Part of Justice Moraes's determination was the possibility of the former president's move to diplomatic missions near the dwelling, considering that the inquiries revealed a history of arranging to ask for protection through a embassy office", a declaration said.

The judicial paperwork emphasizes that the United States embassy in the capital, Brazil's capital, is positioned around 13km from Bolsonaro's home.

Global Responses

The former president's legal troubles have provoked anger from fellow conservative nationalist US President Donald Trump, causing him to implement a half-rate duty on goods coming from Brazil.

He is being detained in a federal law enforcement building in Brazil's capital city and will experience a imprisonment assessment on the next day.

Recent Legal Requests

It was only on Friday that the his legal team asked the Top Court to permit him to serve his whole jail sentence under home confinement, with digital surveillance.

They also requested that he be authorized to exit his dwelling for medical care, saying he required frequent medical attention for lung conditions and other ailments.

Context of Sentencing

He was determined responsible of orchestrating a conspiracy aimed at maintaining his control after he was defeated in the 2022 election to his political opponent, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.

High Court judges said that he was aware of a plot which included plans to murder the current president and his VP candidate, Geraldo Alckmin, and to arrest and execute Justice Moraes - the High Court judge who has been presiding over Bolsonaro's trial.

The scheme was prevented because it couldn't obtain the support of the armed forces officials. The current president was took office without issue on January 1st, 2023.

But a week later, on January 8th, thousands of Bolsonaro supporters attacked and damaged government buildings in the national capital, Brazil's capital.

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

The justices found that the demonstrators had been provoked by him whose strategy, they said, was for the national armed forces to take action, bring back stability and reinstate his authority.

At the time, the legal team called the decades-long sentence unreasonably severe".

He was also banned from running for public office until 2060 - eight years later after the conclusion of his imprisonment.

The former president called the trial a targeted investigation" and said it was intended to stop him participating in the next presidential race.