🔗 Share this article

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

The ex-president was convicted of plotting a government overthrow in last fall and sentenced more than a 27-year term in prison, but he was staying under home detention pending court reviews.

High Court Judge the presiding justice said the move to detain the elderly politician was a preventative measure after recent developments emerged.

This involved attempting to break his electronic bracelet and a invitation to a supporters' gathering that could "allow for a potential flight.

Court Filing Details Escape Concerns

In a document approving the detention, the magistrate said data from the centre monitoring Bolsonaro's house arrest suggested the ex-president's "intention to break the surveillance device to secure accomplishment in his flight.

This, it said, would be made easier by the disorder caused by the protest called by his child.

His son, Flávio Bolsonaro, who works as a legislator, called for a gathering of his backers near Bolsonaro's home to take place on the weekend.

His son wrote on online platforms on the previous day: Do you plan to struggle for your nation, or see it all from your smartphone there on your couch? I urge you to battle with us."

He said the gathering would be so followers could "pray for his health and for the reestablishment of democratic governance in our land."

Foreign Shelter Risks

Part of the judge's determination was the possibility of Bolsonaro's transfer to foreign missions near the residence, considering that the probes revealed a record of arranging to seek refuge through a diplomatic representation", a announcement said.

The court filing emphasizes that the American diplomatic mission in the federal district, Brasilia, is located around 13km from Bolsonaro's home.

Global Responses

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

Bolsonaro is being kept in a national police facility in the capital and will undergo a imprisonment assessment on the following day.

Recent Legal Requests

It was only on Friday that the ex-leader's attorneys asked the Supreme Court to permit him to complete his entire prison term under domestic detention, with digital surveillance.

They also asked that he be allowed to exit his dwelling for healthcare, saying he required ongoing care for respiratory ailments and other health problems.

Details of Guilty Verdict

He was convicted of orchestrating a conspiracy aimed at keeping him in power after he failed to win the presidential race to his left-wing rival, Lula.

High Court judges said that he had knowledge of a plot which involved plans to kill the current president and his vice-presidential running mate, Alckmin, and to imprison and murder the presiding judge - the top judicial official who has been managing the former president's case.

The scheme was stopped because it didn't receive the endorsement of the army and air force commanders. Lula was sworn in without problem on 1 January 2023.

But a seven days after, on January 8th, many his followers attacked and damaged government buildings in the federal district, Brazil's capital.

The security forces intervened and around approximately 1,500 persons were detained.

The justices found that the protesters had been incited by the former president whose strategy, they said, was for the Brazilian military to step in, bring back stability and reinstate his authority.

At the period, his attorneys called the decades-long sentence extremely harsh.

He was also banned from running for public office until twenty-sixty - eight years later after the end of his sentence.

The ex-leader called the court case a targeted investigation" and said it was designed to prevent him competing in the next presidential race.