Bolsonaro has been taken into custody after authorities found he posed a concrete flight risk while under house arrest.
The ex-president was found guilty of planning a government overthrow in the ninth month and given more than 27 years in prison, but he was staying under confinement pending appeals.
Top Judicial Official Alexandre de Moraes said the move to detain the septuagenarian politician was a preventative measure after fresh information came to light.
This included seeking to disable his electronic bracelet and a summons to a demonstration that could "allow for a possible escape.
Judicial Records Show Escape Concerns
In a document approving the arrest, Justice Moraes said intelligence 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 "facilitated by the disorder caused by the demonstration called by his child.
His offspring, his son Flávio, who serves as a senator, called for a gathering of his backers near Bolsonaro's home to take place on Saturday evening.
Flávio Bolsonaro wrote on digital networks on Friday: "Are you going to fight for your country, or observe everything from your phone there on your couch? I urge you to battle with us."
He said the demonstration would be so supporters could seek divine intervention for his physical condition and for the restoration of democratic rule in our country."
Embassy Asylum Concerns
Part of the judge's determination was the potential of his transfer to foreign missions near the residence, considering that the inquiries revealed a history of arranging to seek refuge through a consular facility", a announcement said.
The judicial paperwork highlights that the American diplomatic mission in the capital, the capital city, is located around 8 miles from his dwelling.
International Reactions
Bolsonaro's legal woes have provoked anger from fellow populist conservative US President Trump, leading him to implement a fifty percent tax on goods coming from Brazil.
He is being kept in a Federal Police station in Brazil's capital city and will have a custody hearing on Sunday.
Recent Judicial Appeals
It was only on last Friday that the his legal team asked the Top Court to allow him to complete his entire prison term under domestic detention, with electronic monitoring.
They also requested that Bolsonaro be authorized to leave his home for healthcare, saying he demanded regular treatment for pulmonary infections and other illnesses.
Context of Sentencing
The former president was found guilty of heading a scheme aimed at maintaining his control after he was defeated in the 2022 election to his political opponent, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.
Top judicial officials said that he had knowledge of a plot which included plans to assassinate the current president and his vice-presidential running mate, his vice-presidential candidate, and to detain and kill Justice Moraes - the Supreme Court justice who has been overseeing the former president's case.
The conspiracy was stopped because it didn't receive the backing of the army and air force commanders. The current president was inaugurated without incident on January 1st, 2023.
But a following week, on January 8th, thousands of his backers invaded and destroyed government buildings in the national capital, the capital city.
The police took action and around approximately 1,500 persons were detained.
The justices found that the demonstrators had been provoked by him whose plan, they said, was for the Brazilian military to step in, bring back stability and reinstate his authority.
At the time, the legal team called the 27 years and three months sentence "absurdly excessive.
He was also prohibited from campaigning for office until the year 2060 - eight years after the end of his sentence.
The one-time head of state called the court case a targeted investigation" and said it was intended to stop him running in the 2026 presidential election.
