Bolsonaro has been arrested after authorities determined he posed a definite escape threat while under domestic detention.
The one-time leader was sentenced of orchestrating a military coup in the ninth month and sentenced more than 27 years in prison, but he continued under confinement pending legal challenges.
High Court Judge Alexandre de Moraes said the move to detain the 70-year-old politician was a precautionary step after recent developments came to light.
This included seeking to disable his electronic bracelet and a call for a supporters' gathering that could enable a chance to flee".
Court Filing Details Flight Fears
In a document approving the arrest, the judge said intelligence from the centre monitoring the former president's confinement suggested the one-time head of state's aim to disable the surveillance device to guarantee victory in his escape.
This, it said, would be made easier by the chaos caused by the protest called by his child.
His son, his son Flávio, who works as a legislator, called for a meeting of his backers near his father's house to take place on the weekend.
His son wrote on social media on Friday: "Are you going to fight for your homeland, or see it all from your phone there on your couch? I invite you to battle with us."
He said the vigil would be so followers could seek divine intervention for his health and for the restoration of democratic rule in our land."
Foreign Shelter Risks
Part of Justice Moraes's ruling was the chance of his "relocation to foreign missions near the dwelling, considering that the inquiries revealed a record of organizing to ask for protection through a consular facility", a announcement said.
The court filing highlights that the United States embassy in the national capital, Brasilia, is situated around 8 miles from Bolsonaro's home.
Global Responses
Bolsonaro's legal woes have provoked anger from fellow right-wing populist American leader President Trump, leading him to implement a 50% tariff on goods coming from Brazil.
He is being detained in a national police facility in Brazil's capital city and will have a detention review on the next day.
Recent Legal Requests
It was only on Friday that the ex-leader's attorneys asked the Top Court to authorize him to serve his whole jail sentence under home confinement, with digital surveillance.
They also asked that he be authorized to depart his residence for medical treatment, saying he needed regular treatment for lung conditions and other health problems.
Background on Conviction
Bolsonaro was found guilty of orchestrating a conspiracy aimed at maintaining his control after he failed to win the presidential race to his left-wing rival, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.
Supreme Court justices said that he knew of a plan which encompassed plans to assassinate his opponent and his VP candidate, Alckmin, and to detain and kill the presiding judge - the top judicial official who has been overseeing the former president's case.
The conspiracy was stopped because it couldn't obtain the backing of the military leaders. His successor was sworn in without issue on January 1st, 2023.
But a seven days after, on the eighth of January, many Bolsonaro supporters stormed and vandalised government buildings in the national capital, Brazil's capital.
The law enforcement stepped in and around approximately 1,500 persons were detained.
The justices found that the demonstrators had been provoked by the former president whose strategy, they said, was for the Brazilian military to intervene, bring back stability and return him to office.
At the period, Bolsonaro's lawyers called the over 27-year sentence extremely harsh.
He was also banned from campaigning for office until twenty-sixty - eight years after the completion of his term.
The ex-leader called the trial a targeted investigation" and said it was intended to stop him competing in the next presidential race.
