🔗 Share this article Bolsonaro detained after being deemed a flight risk Jair Bolsonaro has been detained after authorities concluded he posed a concrete flight risk while under domestic detention. The ex-president was convicted of plotting a military coup in last fall and given more than 27 years in jail, but he was staying under confinement pending legal challenges. High Court Judge the presiding justice said the action to imprison the 70-year-old politician was a precautionary step after fresh information came to light. This included seeking to disable his tracking device and a call for a demonstration that could "allow for a potential flight. Court Filing Details Flight Fears In a document approving the custody, the magistrate said intelligence from the unit overseeing his home detention suggested the ex-president's aim to disable the tracking monitor to guarantee victory in his getaway". This, it said, would be "facilitated by the chaos caused by the protest called by his offspring. His child, Flávio, who serves as a legislator, called for a meeting of his backers near Bolsonaro's home to take place on Saturday night. His son wrote on social media on last Friday: Will you battle for your country, or see it all from your smartphone there on your settee? I call on you to struggle with us." He said the gathering would be so backers could seek divine intervention for his physical condition and for the restoration of democratic rule in our country." Embassy Asylum Concerns Part of the judge's ruling was the possibility of his transfer to foreign missions near the residence, considering that the inquiries revealed a history of organizing to ask for protection through a consular facility", a announcement said. The court filing underscores that the United States embassy in the national capital, the capital city, is located around 8 miles from his dwelling. International Reactions Bolsonaro's legal woes have provoked anger from fellow conservative nationalist United States President President Trump, causing him to impose a 50% tariff on imports of Brazilian goods. Bolsonaro is being held in a national police facility in the capital and will have a detention review on the following day. Recent Judicial Appeals It was only on the previous day that the ex-leader's attorneys asked the High Court to authorize him to fulfill his full incarceration period under domestic detention, with tracking devices. They also asked that Bolsonaro be permitted to leave his home for medical care, saying he needed ongoing care for lung conditions and other ailments. Details of Guilty Verdict Bolsonaro was determined responsible of orchestrating a plot aimed at maintaining his control after he was defeated in the 2022 election to his left-wing rival, Lula. Top judicial officials said that he was aware of a scheme which involved plans to assassinate the current president and his VP candidate, Geraldo Alckmin, and to arrest and execute Alexandre de Moraes - the High Court judge who has been overseeing his judicial proceedings. The plot was thwarted because it failed to get the backing of the army and air force commanders. The current president was sworn in without issue on 1 January 2023. But a following week, on January 8th, numerous his backers stormed and vandalised public facilities in the capital, Brazil's capital. The security forces intervened and around approximately 1,500 persons were detained. The justices found that the demonstrators had been incited by Bolsonaro whose strategy, they said, was for the Brazilian military to intervene, reestablish control and reinstate his authority. At the time, Bolsonaro's lawyers called the decades-long sentence extremely harsh. He was also banned from campaigning for office until twenty-sixty - eight years later after the completion of his term. The one-time head of state called the trial a "witch hunt and said it was designed to prevent him competing in the 2026 presidential election.