🔗 Share this article Bolsonaro taken into custody after being declared a risk of fleeing The former Brazilian leader has been arrested after authorities concluded he posed a concrete flight risk while under domestic detention. The one-time leader was found guilty of plotting a armed takeover in last fall and sentenced more than 27 years in jail, but he continued under confinement pending legal challenges. Brazilian Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes said the move to detain the septuagenarian politician was a precautionary step after fresh information emerged. This encompassed trying to remove his electronic bracelet and a call for a demonstration that could enable a potential flight. Legal Document Reveals Flight Fears In a document approving the arrest, the magistrate said information from the facility tracking the former president's confinement suggested the former leader's aim to disable the surveillance device to secure accomplishment in his flight. This, it said, would be made easier by the confusion caused by the protest called by his son. His offspring, his son Flávio, who serves as a congressional representative, called for a meeting of his supporters near the former president's residence to take place on Saturday evening. His son wrote on digital networks on Friday: "Are you going to fight for your homeland, or observe everything from your mobile device there on your settee? I urge you to struggle with us." He said the gathering would be so backers could seek divine intervention for his physical condition and for the return of democracy in our nation." Diplomatic Refuge Fears Part of the magistrate's determination was the chance of his "relocation to foreign missions near the dwelling, considering that the inquiries revealed a record of planning to seek refuge through a embassy office", a announcement said. The legal document highlights that the United States embassy in the capital, Brasilia, is positioned around 13km from Bolsonaro's home. Global Responses Bolsonaro's legal woes have provoked anger from fellow conservative nationalist US President Trump, causing him to impose a fifty percent tax on imports of Brazilian goods. Bolsonaro is being kept in a national police facility in Brasilia and will have a detention review on the following day. Recent Legal Requests It was only on last Friday that the his legal team asked the High Court to permit him to serve his whole jail sentence under home confinement, with tracking devices. They also petitioned that he be authorized to leave his home for healthcare, saying he demanded ongoing care for lung conditions and other ailments. Context of Sentencing Bolsonaro was determined responsible of orchestrating a conspiracy aimed at keeping him in power after he failed to win the presidential race to his political opponent, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. High Court judges said that he knew of a scheme which involved plans to kill the current president and his running partner, his vice-presidential candidate, and to imprison and murder Justice Moraes - the Supreme Court justice who has been presiding over the former president's case. The scheme was thwarted because it couldn't obtain the backing of the military leaders. Lula was inaugurated without issue on the first day of 2023. But a seven days after, on 8 January, many his followers attacked and damaged official structures in the capital, the capital city. The law enforcement intervened and around approximately 1,500 persons were detained. The judges found that the protesters had been encouraged by the former president whose plan, they said, was for the country's army to take action, reestablish control and bring him back to power. At the period, the legal team called the decades-long sentence unreasonably severe". He was also banned from running for public office until the year 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 running in the 2026 national vote.