Jair Bolsonaro has been detained after authorities found he posed a concrete flight risk while under domestic detention.
The one-time leader was found guilty of orchestrating a military coup in September and sentenced more than 27 years in incarceration, but he continued under confinement pending court reviews.
Brazilian Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes said the move to detain the elderly politician was a safety action after recent developments were revealed.
This involved trying to remove his tracking device and a summons to a supporters' gathering that could "allow for a possible escape.
Legal Document Reveals Escape Risks
In a document approving the custody, the judge said intelligence from the centre monitoring the former president's confinement suggested the ex-president's aim to disable the surveillance device to ensure success in his getaway".
This, it said, would be made easier by the confusion caused by the gathering called by his offspring.
His son, his son Flávio, who holds office as a congressional representative, called for a meeting of his backers near the former president's residence to take place on the weekend.
Flávio Bolsonaro wrote on social media on Friday: "Are you going to fight for your nation, or observe everything from your phone there on your couch? I urge you to fight with us."
He said the vigil would be so backers could seek divine intervention for his physical condition and for the return of democracy in our country."
Embassy Asylum Concerns
Part of the judge's determination was the chance of Bolsonaro's move to diplomatic missions near the dwelling, considering that the probes revealed a history of planning to seek refuge through a diplomatic representation", a statement said.
The judicial paperwork underscores that the United States embassy in the national capital, the capital city, is positioned around approximately 13 kilometers from Bolsonaro's home.
International Reactions
Bolsonaro's legal woes have generated frustration from fellow conservative nationalist American leader President Trump, prompting him to impose a 50% tariff on imports of Brazilian goods.
The former president is being held in a national police facility in the capital and will experience a custody hearing on the following day.
Latest Court Petitions
It was only on Friday that the ex-leader's attorneys asked the Supreme Court to authorize him to serve his whole jail sentence under home confinement, with digital surveillance.
They also petitioned that he be authorized to exit his dwelling for healthcare, saying he demanded frequent medical attention for pulmonary infections and other illnesses.
Details of Guilty Verdict
Bolsonaro was found guilty of heading a plot aimed at maintaining his control after he was defeated in the 2022 election to his ideological adversary, Lula.
Supreme Court justices said that he had knowledge of a plan which encompassed plans to kill his opponent and his VP candidate, Geraldo Alckmin, and to detain and kill the presiding judge - the top judicial official who has been managing Bolsonaro's trial.
The conspiracy was prevented because it couldn't obtain the endorsement of the army and air force commanders. Lula was sworn in without incident on 1 January 2023.
But a week later, on 8 January, numerous his followers invaded and destroyed government buildings in the national capital, Brasília.
The police stepped in and around 1,500 people were taken into custody.
The judges found that the demonstrators had been encouraged by Bolsonaro whose scheme, they said, was for the country's army to take action, reestablish control and reinstate his authority.
At the moment, Bolsonaro's lawyers called the 27 years and three months sentence "absurdly excessive.
He was also banned from campaigning for office until twenty-sixty - a decade minus two years after the end of his sentence.
The ex-leader called the court case a political persecution and said it was aimed at blocking him running in the next presidential race.
