Bolsonaro has been taken into custody after authorities determined he posed a serious risk of fleeing while under house arrest.
The ex-president was found guilty of planning a military coup in the ninth month and handed more than 27 years in jail, but he was staying under home detention pending court reviews.
High Court Judge Justice Moraes said the decision to arrest the 70-year-old politician was a safety action after fresh information emerged.
This involved trying to remove his ankle monitor and a invitation to a demonstration that could enable a chance to flee".
Legal Document Reveals Flight Fears
In a filing authorising the detention, Justice Moraes said intelligence from the centre monitoring the former president's confinement suggested the ex-president's "intention to break the electronic ankle bracelet to secure accomplishment in his getaway".
This, it said, would be made easier by the confusion caused by the demonstration called by his son.
His son, Flávio Bolsonaro, who serves as a legislator, called for a meeting of his supporters near his father's house to take place on Saturday night.
The senator wrote on online platforms on the previous day: "Are you going to fight for your homeland, or watch it all from your smartphone there on your settee? I call on you to struggle with us."
He said the gathering would be so supporters could offer prayers for his health and for the reestablishment of democratic governance in our country."
Embassy Asylum Concerns
Part of the magistrate's ruling was the possibility of his "relocation to embassies near the dwelling, considering that the investigations revealed a background of organizing to ask for protection through a diplomatic representation", a statement said.
The court filing highlights that the American diplomatic mission in the national capital, the capital city, is positioned around approximately 13 kilometers from Bolsonaro's home.
Worldwide Consequences
Bolsonaro's legal woes have generated frustration from fellow right-wing populist US President President Trump, prompting him to implement a 50% tariff on goods coming from Brazil.
He is being detained in a national police facility in Brasilia and will have a custody hearing on Sunday.
Latest Court Petitions
It was only on last Friday that the former president's lawyers asked the Top Court to permit him to complete his entire prison term under domestic detention, with tracking devices.
They also petitioned that Bolsonaro be allowed to exit his dwelling for healthcare, saying he needed ongoing care for lung conditions and other ailments.
Background on Conviction
He was convicted of leading a scheme aimed at retaining his authority after he lost the presidential race to his ideological adversary, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.
High Court judges said that he was aware of a plot which involved plans to murder his opponent and his VP candidate, Geraldo Alckmin, and to arrest and execute Alexandre de Moraes - the High Court judge who has been presiding over Bolsonaro's trial.
The plot was prevented because it didn't receive the endorsement of the armed forces officials. Lula was inaugurated without incident on 1 January 2023.
But a seven days after, on January 8th, many Bolsonaro supporters invaded and destroyed public facilities in the capital, Brasília.
The law enforcement intervened and around fifteen hundred individuals were detained.
The judges found that the protesters had been encouraged by the former president whose plan, they said, was for the national armed forces to step in, reestablish control and return him to office.
At the period, Bolsonaro's lawyers called the decades-long sentence unreasonably severe".
He was also banned from campaigning for office until twenty-sixty - eight years after the conclusion of his imprisonment.
The one-time head of state called the trial a political persecution and said it was aimed at blocking him participating in the 2026 presidential election.
