Jair Bolsonaro has been taken into custody after authorities found he posed a concrete flight risk while under home confinement.
The one-time leader was sentenced of plotting a military coup in last fall and handed more than 27 years in jail, but he remained under house arrest pending appeals.
Top Judicial Official Justice Moraes said the action to imprison the septuagenarian politician was a safety action after fresh information emerged.
This included seeking to disable his electronic bracelet and a invitation to a supporters' gathering that could enable a possible escape.
Judicial Records Show Flight Fears
In a paperwork permitting the arrest, Justice Moraes said information from the centre monitoring the former president's confinement suggested the former leader's aim to disable the surveillance device to guarantee victory in his flight.
This, it said, would be assisted by the chaos caused by the protest called by his offspring.
His child, Flávio Bolsonaro, who serves as a congressional representative, called for a assembly of his backers near his father's house to take place on Saturday night.
The senator wrote on social media on the previous day: Do you plan to struggle for your country, or see it all from your mobile device there on your settee? I call on you to battle with us."
He said the vigil would be so followers could seek divine intervention for his physical condition and for the return of democracy in our land."
Diplomatic Refuge Fears
Part of Justice Moraes's decision was the possibility of Bolsonaro's "relocation to embassies near the home, considering that the inquiries revealed a background of planning to ask for protection through a consular facility", a statement said.
The court filing emphasizes that the United States embassy in the national capital, the capital city, is located around 13km from the former president's residence.
Global Responses
The former president's legal troubles have drawn the ire of fellow populist conservative American leader Donald Trump, prompting him to implement a half-rate duty on Brazilian product imports.
He is being detained in a national police facility in Brazil's capital city and will experience a detention review on Sunday.
Recent Legal Requests
It was only on Friday that the former president's lawyers asked the High Court to permit him to complete his entire prison term under domestic detention, with electronic monitoring.
They also asked that he be authorized to depart his residence for medical care, saying he required regular treatment for lung conditions and other ailments.
Context of Sentencing
He was found guilty of leading a scheme aimed at maintaining his control after he was defeated in the national vote to his political opponent, Lula.
Top judicial officials said that he had knowledge of a scheme which included plans to kill Lula and his running partner, Geraldo Alckmin, and to imprison and murder Justice Moraes - the top judicial official who has been overseeing the former president's case.
The conspiracy was stopped because it didn't receive the support of the armed forces officials. The current president was sworn in without issue on January 1st, 2023.
But a following week, on January 8th, thousands of Bolsonaro supporters attacked and damaged public facilities in the federal district, Brasília.
The law enforcement stepped in and around fifteen hundred individuals were detained.
The magistrates found that the rioters had been provoked by the former president whose plan, they said, was for the national armed forces to step in, restore order and return him to office.
At the period, his attorneys called the over 27-year sentence extremely harsh.
He was also barred from seeking elected position until 2060 - eight years later 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 competing in the 2026 national vote.
