Bolsonaro detained after being declared a risk of fleeing

placeholder news image

Bolsonaro has been taken into custody after authorities found he posed a definite escape threat while under domestic detention.

The former head of state was convicted of planning a government overthrow in September and sentenced more than over two decades in jail, but he was staying under confinement pending appeals.

Top Judicial Official Justice Moraes said the move to detain the 70-year-old politician was a preventative measure after "new facts" were revealed.

This involved attempting to break his electronic bracelet and a call for a public vigil that could enable a possible escape.

Court Filing Details Escape Concerns

In a paperwork permitting the detention, Justice Moraes said information from the centre monitoring the former president's confinement suggested the one-time head of state's plan to remove the surveillance device to guarantee victory in his flight.

This, it said, would be "facilitated by the chaos caused by the demonstration called by his offspring.

His son, Flávio, who holds office as a senator, called for a gathering of his supporters near the former president's residence to take place on Saturday night.

Flávio Bolsonaro wrote on online platforms on Friday: Do you plan to struggle for your nation, or observe everything from your smartphone there on your sofa? I call on you to struggle with us."

He said the vigil would be so backers could seek divine intervention for his well-being and for the return of democracy in our country."

Embassy Asylum Concerns

Part of Justice Moraes's ruling was the possibility of Bolsonaro's move to embassies near the residence, considering that the probes revealed a background of organizing to seek refuge through a diplomatic representation", a statement said.

The legal document underscores that the US embassy in the federal district, the capital city, is positioned around 8 miles from the former president's residence.

Global Responses

His judicial problems have provoked anger from fellow populist conservative American leader Trump, causing him to implement a fifty percent tax on imports of Brazilian goods.

Bolsonaro is being detained in a federal law enforcement building in Brasilia and will have a detention review on the following day.

Recent Judicial Appeals

It was only on last Friday that the his legal team asked the Top Court to permit him to complete his entire prison term under domestic detention, with electronic monitoring.

They also petitioned that he be authorized to depart his residence for healthcare, saying he required regular treatment for respiratory ailments and other health problems.

Background on Conviction

The former president was convicted of orchestrating a conspiracy aimed at maintaining his control after he lost the national vote to his political opponent, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.

Supreme Court justices said that he had knowledge of a plot which included plans to kill his opponent and his vice-presidential running mate, Alckmin, and to detain and kill Alexandre de Moraes - the Supreme Court justice who has been managing Bolsonaro's trial.

The scheme was stopped because it couldn't obtain the backing of the army and air force commanders. The current president was inaugurated without problem on the first day of 2023.

But a seven days after, on the eighth of January, many his backers stormed and vandalised government buildings in the federal district, Brazil's capital.

The police intervened and around 1,500 people were detained.

The judges found that the protesters had been encouraged by him whose scheme, they said, was for the country's army to intervene, reestablish control and bring him back to power.

At the moment, the legal team called the decades-long sentence "absurdly excessive.

He was also banned from seeking elected position until the year 2060 - eight years later after the conclusion of his imprisonment.

The former president called the court case a political persecution and said it was aimed at blocking him competing in the 2026 national vote.

Natalie Jefferson
Natalie Jefferson

A seasoned journalist specializing in royal affairs with over a decade of experience covering British monarchy events.