Bolsonaro has been detained after authorities found he posed a concrete flight risk while under house arrest.
The former head of state was convicted of orchestrating a government overthrow in last fall and given more than over two decades in incarceration, but he was staying under house arrest pending court reviews.
High Court Judge Justice Moraes said the decision to arrest the septuagenarian politician was a preventative measure after "new facts" were revealed.
This involved seeking to disable his tracking device and a summons to a supporters' gathering that could "allow for a chance to flee".
Court Filing Details Escape Risks
In a document approving the custody, Justice Moraes said information from the unit overseeing Bolsonaro's house arrest suggested the ex-president's plan to remove the surveillance device to guarantee victory in his flight.
This, it said, would be assisted by the chaos caused by the demonstration called by his child.
His offspring, Flávio Bolsonaro, who works as a congressional representative, called for a assembly of his followers near his father's house to take place on the weekend.
His son wrote on social media on the previous day: Do you plan to struggle for your country, or observe everything from your mobile device there on your sofa? I urge you to fight with us."
He said the demonstration would be so followers could "pray for his well-being and for the reestablishment of democratic governance in our land."
Embassy Asylum Concerns
Part of the judge's decision was the potential of his move to embassies near the dwelling, considering that the investigations revealed a record of arranging to seek refuge through a consular facility", a statement said.
The court filing highlights that the US embassy in the capital, the capital city, is positioned around 8 miles from Bolsonaro's home.
Worldwide Consequences
Bolsonaro's legal woes have drawn the ire of fellow populist conservative United States President President Trump, causing him to implement a 50% tariff on goods coming from Brazil.
Bolsonaro is being kept in a federal law enforcement building in Brazil's capital city and will have a custody hearing on the following day.
Recent Judicial Appeals
It was only on last Friday that the his legal team asked the High Court to authorize him to serve his whole jail sentence under house arrest, with digital surveillance.
They also requested that the former president be allowed to exit his dwelling for medical care, saying he required ongoing care for respiratory ailments and other illnesses.
Background on Conviction
Bolsonaro was convicted of heading a plot aimed at maintaining his control after he lost the presidential race to his ideological adversary, Lula.
High Court judges said that he had knowledge of a plot which involved plans to assassinate the current president and his running partner, Geraldo Alckmin, and to imprison and murder Alexandre de Moraes - the top judicial official who has been presiding over the former president's case.
The plot was prevented because it failed to get the endorsement of the military leaders. The current president was inaugurated without incident on the first day of 2023.
But a week later, on 8 January, many his followers invaded and destroyed official structures in the national capital, the capital city.
The law enforcement took action and around approximately 1,500 persons were taken into custody.
The justices found that the demonstrators had been incited by him whose scheme, they said, was for the Brazilian military to intervene, bring back stability and reinstate his authority.
At the period, Bolsonaro's lawyers called the decades-long sentence "absurdly excessive.
He was also barred from running for public office until twenty-sixty - eight years later after the completion of his term.
The one-time head of state called the legal proceedings a "witch hunt and said it was designed to prevent him participating in the 2026 national vote.
