Bolsonaro arrested after being deemed a flight risk

placeholder news image

Bolsonaro has been arrested after authorities concluded he posed a definite escape threat while under house arrest.

The one-time leader was convicted of plotting a military coup in the ninth month and handed more than 27 years in jail, but he continued under confinement pending court reviews.

Top Judicial Official Alexandre de Moraes said the action to imprison the 70-year-old politician was a safety action after "new facts" came to light.

This involved attempting to break his ankle monitor and a summons to a demonstration that could enable a possible escape.

Court Filing Details Flight Fears

In a paperwork permitting the custody, Justice Moraes said information from the unit overseeing his home detention suggested the one-time head of state's plan to remove the tracking monitor to ensure success in his escape.

This, it said, would be assisted by the disorder caused by the gathering called by his child.

His son, his son Flávio, who holds office as a legislator, called for a gathering of his followers near his father's house to take place on Saturday evening.

Flávio Bolsonaro wrote on social media on last Friday: Will you battle for your homeland, or watch it all from your phone there on your sofa? I urge you to struggle with us."

He said the demonstration would be so followers could seek divine intervention for his health and for the restoration of democratic rule in our land."

Embassy Asylum Concerns

Part of the judge's decision was the potential of the former president's "relocation to diplomatic missions near the home, considering that the inquiries revealed a history of arranging to ask for protection through a consular facility", a announcement said.

The judicial paperwork underscores that the United States embassy in the federal district, Brasilia, is situated around 8 miles from the former president's residence.

International Reactions

His judicial problems have provoked anger from fellow right-wing populist United States President Donald Trump, prompting him to enact a fifty percent tax on imports of Brazilian goods.

The former president is being detained in a national police facility in Brasilia and will experience a detention review on the next day.

Latest Court Petitions

It was only on the previous day that the his legal team asked the Supreme Court to authorize him to fulfill his full incarceration period under home confinement, with digital surveillance.

They also requested that the former president be authorized to leave his home for healthcare, saying he demanded ongoing care for lung conditions and other illnesses.

Background on Conviction

The former president was found guilty of orchestrating a conspiracy aimed at keeping him in power after he was defeated in the presidential race to his ideological adversary, Lula.

Supreme Court justices said that he knew of a scheme which involved plans to assassinate Lula and his running partner, his vice-presidential candidate, and to detain and kill the presiding judge - the High Court judge who has been overseeing the former president's case.

The plot was prevented because it couldn't obtain the support of the military leaders. The current president was sworn in without issue on 1 January 2023.

But a week later, on January 8th, numerous his followers attacked and damaged public facilities in the national capital, Brazil's capital.

The law enforcement stepped in and around fifteen hundred individuals were detained.

The magistrates found that the rioters had been encouraged by Bolsonaro whose scheme, they said, was for the national armed forces to intervene, bring back stability and bring him back to power.

At the period, his attorneys called the decades-long sentence unreasonably severe".

He was also barred from running for public office until the year 2060 - eight years later after the conclusion of his imprisonment.

The ex-leader called the court case a "witch hunt and said it was designed to prevent him competing in the 2026 presidential election.

Gregory Morgan
Gregory Morgan

Elena Visser is a Dutch curator and writer passionate about emerging artists and creative culture.