Jair Bolsonaro detained after being declared a flight risk

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Jair Bolsonaro has been taken into custody after authorities concluded he posed a serious risk of fleeing while under house arrest.

The ex-president was sentenced of planning a armed takeover in September and sentenced more than 27 years in prison, but he continued under house arrest pending appeals.

Top Judicial Official Alexandre de Moraes said the decision to arrest the septuagenarian politician was a preventative measure after fresh information were revealed.

This involved seeking to disable his tracking device and a invitation to a public vigil that could facilitate a chance to flee".

Judicial Records Show Flight Fears

In a paperwork permitting the custody, the judge said information from the centre monitoring his home detention suggested the ex-president's plan to remove the surveillance device to ensure success in his escape.

This, it said, would be "facilitated by the chaos caused by the protest called by his child.

His son, his son Flávio, who works as a senator, called for a assembly of his supporters near his father's house to take place on Saturday night.

Flávio Bolsonaro wrote on online platforms on the previous day: "Are you going to fight for your nation, or see it all from your mobile device there on your sofa? I call on you to fight with us."

He said the gathering would be so supporters could "pray for his health and for the restoration of democratic rule in our land."

Embassy Asylum Concerns

Part of Justice Moraes's ruling was the potential of Bolsonaro's "relocation to embassies near the dwelling, considering that the inquiries revealed a history of arranging to ask for protection through a diplomatic representation", a declaration said.

The court filing emphasizes that the US embassy in the capital, Brasilia, is situated around approximately 13 kilometers from the former president's residence.

International Reactions

His judicial problems have generated frustration from fellow populist conservative US President President Trump, leading him to impose a fifty percent tax on goods coming from Brazil.

He is being held in a national police facility in Brazil's capital city and will undergo a custody hearing on the next day.

Recent Legal Requests

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

They also asked that Bolsonaro be authorized to leave his home for medical treatment, saying he needed frequent medical attention for respiratory ailments and other ailments.

Context of Sentencing

The former president was convicted of heading a plot aimed at keeping him in power after he was defeated in the presidential race to his ideological adversary, President Lula.

Supreme Court justices said that he knew of a plan which involved plans to assassinate his opponent and his running partner, his vice-presidential candidate, and to imprison and murder Justice Moraes - the top judicial official who has been managing the former president's case.

The scheme was stopped because it failed to get the support of the armed forces officials. His successor was inaugurated without issue on the first day of 2023.

But a seven days after, on 8 January, many Bolsonaro supporters stormed and vandalised public facilities in the national capital, Brasília.

The security forces stepped in and around approximately 1,500 persons were taken into custody.

The judges found that the demonstrators had been incited by Bolsonaro whose scheme, they said, was for the Brazilian military to take action, bring back stability and reinstate his authority.

At the period, Bolsonaro's lawyers called the over 27-year sentence unreasonably severe".

He was also prohibited from campaigning for office until twenty-sixty - eight years later after the completion of his term.

The one-time head of state called the trial a targeted investigation" and said it was aimed at blocking him participating in the 2026 national vote.

Robert Baker
Robert Baker

A digital strategist and productivity coach with over a decade of experience in tech consulting and workflow optimization.