Jair Bolsonaro has been taken into custody after authorities concluded he posed a serious risk of fleeing while under domestic detention.
The former head of state was convicted of planning a government overthrow in last fall and handed more than over two decades in incarceration, but he was staying under home detention pending appeals.
High Court Judge the presiding justice said the decision to arrest the elderly politician was a safety action after fresh information came to light.
This included seeking to disable his tracking device and a call for a demonstration that could enable a chance to flee".
Legal Document Reveals Flight Fears
In a paperwork permitting the detention, Justice Moraes said intelligence from the centre monitoring the former president's confinement suggested the ex-president's aim to disable the tracking monitor to guarantee victory in his flight.
This, it said, would be "facilitated by the confusion caused by the demonstration called by his son.
His offspring, Flávio, who works as a senator, called for a gathering of his backers near the former president's residence to take place on Saturday evening.
His son wrote on social media on last Friday: "Are you going to fight for your country, or observe everything from your phone there on your couch? I call on you to battle with us."
He said the demonstration would be so supporters could "pray for his health and for the return of democracy in our nation."
Diplomatic Refuge Fears
Part of Justice Moraes's decision was the possibility of the former president's move to diplomatic missions near the dwelling, considering that the probes revealed a record of arranging to seek refuge through a embassy office", a declaration said.
The legal document emphasizes that the United States embassy in the capital, Brasilia, is situated around approximately 13 kilometers from Bolsonaro's home.
Global Responses
The former president's legal troubles have generated frustration from fellow right-wing populist American leader Donald Trump, causing him to implement a half-rate duty on imports of Brazilian goods.
Bolsonaro is being kept in a federal law enforcement building in Brasilia and will have a detention review on Sunday.
Recent Legal Requests
It was only on Friday that the his legal team asked the Supreme Court to permit him to complete his entire prison term under domestic detention, with electronic monitoring.
They also requested that the former president be permitted to depart his residence for healthcare, saying he demanded frequent medical attention for respiratory ailments and other ailments.
Background on Conviction
Bolsonaro was found guilty of heading a conspiracy aimed at maintaining his control after he lost the national vote to his ideological adversary, Lula.
Top judicial officials said that he knew of a plan which encompassed plans to assassinate Lula and his running partner, his vice-presidential candidate, and to imprison and murder the presiding judge - the Supreme Court justice who has been overseeing Bolsonaro's trial.
The conspiracy was prevented because it couldn't obtain the support of the military leaders. His successor was sworn in without issue on the first day of 2023.
But a seven days after, on the eighth of January, numerous his followers invaded and destroyed official structures in the national capital, Brazil's capital.
The law enforcement intervened and around approximately 1,500 persons were detained.
The judges found that the protesters had been incited by Bolsonaro whose scheme, they said, was for the country's army to take action, restore order and return him to office.
At the moment, Bolsonaro's lawyers called the over 27-year sentence extremely harsh.
He was also prohibited from running for public office until twenty-sixty - a decade minus two years after the conclusion of his imprisonment.
The former president called the legal proceedings a "witch hunt and said it was aimed at blocking him running in the next presidential race.
