Bolsonaro has been taken into custody after authorities determined he posed a serious risk of fleeing while under domestic detention.
The ex-president was sentenced of plotting a military coup in last fall and handed more than 27 years in incarceration, but he was staying under home detention pending appeals.
Brazilian Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes said the move to detain the 70-year-old politician was a precautionary step after fresh information came to light.
This included seeking to disable his ankle monitor and a invitation to a supporters' gathering that could facilitate a chance to flee".
Court Filing Details Escape Concerns
In a filing authorising the arrest, the magistrate said intelligence from the centre monitoring Bolsonaro's house arrest suggested the ex-president's "intention to break the tracking monitor to guarantee victory in his getaway".
This, it said, would be "facilitated by the confusion caused by the protest called by his son.
His son, Flávio, who works as a senator, called for a meeting of his backers near his father's house to take place on Saturday evening.
His son wrote on online platforms on the previous day: "Are you going to fight for your homeland, or see it all from your phone there on your sofa? I urge you to battle with us."
He said the gathering would be so backers could "pray for his well-being and for the return of democracy in our land."
Foreign Shelter Risks
Part of the judge's ruling was the possibility of his "relocation to foreign missions near the residence, considering that the investigations revealed a record of organizing to request asylum through a embassy office", a statement said.
The judicial paperwork highlights that the US embassy in the federal district, Brazil's capital, is located around 13km from Bolsonaro's home.
International Reactions
Bolsonaro's legal woes have generated frustration from fellow populist conservative US President President Trump, leading him to enact a half-rate duty on goods coming from Brazil.
The former president is being detained in a federal law enforcement building in Brasilia and will undergo a imprisonment assessment on the next day.
Recent Legal Requests
It was only on last Friday that the his legal team asked the Top Court to authorize him to fulfill his full incarceration period under domestic detention, with electronic monitoring.
They also requested that the former president be allowed to depart his residence for healthcare, saying he needed ongoing care for respiratory ailments and other illnesses.
Context of Sentencing
The former president was convicted of heading a conspiracy aimed at keeping him in power after he lost the national vote to his left-wing rival, Lula.
High Court judges said that he had knowledge of a plan which encompassed plans to murder Lula and his vice-presidential running mate, his vice-presidential candidate, and to imprison and murder the presiding judge - the Supreme Court justice who has been overseeing his judicial proceedings.
The plot was prevented because it couldn't obtain the support of the military leaders. His successor was sworn in without incident on the first day of 2023.
But a seven days after, on 8 January, numerous his followers invaded and destroyed public facilities in the federal district, Brazil's capital.
The law enforcement intervened and around fifteen hundred individuals were arrested.
The judges found that the rioters had been provoked by the former president whose strategy, they said, was for the national armed forces to intervene, bring back stability and return him to office.
At the period, Bolsonaro's lawyers called the over 27-year sentence "absurdly excessive.
He was also barred from running for public office until twenty-sixty - eight years after the conclusion of his imprisonment.
The one-time head of state called the trial a "witch hunt and said it was aimed at blocking him competing in the 2026 national vote.
