Bolsonaro has been taken into custody after authorities found he posed a concrete flight risk while under domestic detention.
The one-time leader was convicted of orchestrating a military coup in September and given more than 27 years in prison, but he continued under confinement pending appeals.
Brazilian Supreme Court Justice the presiding justice said the move to detain the elderly politician was a preventative measure after recent developments came to light.
This encompassed attempting to break his ankle monitor and a summons to a demonstration that could "allow for a possible escape.
Court Filing Details Escape Concerns
In a document approving the arrest, Justice Moraes said intelligence from the unit overseeing his home detention suggested the former leader's aim to disable the electronic ankle bracelet to ensure success in his escape.
This, it said, would be "facilitated by the chaos caused by the demonstration called by his offspring.
His son, his son Flávio, who works as a legislator, called for a meeting of his backers near Bolsonaro's home to take place on the weekend.
The senator wrote on social media on last Friday: Will you battle for your homeland, or observe everything from your phone there on your settee? I call on you to battle with us."
He said the demonstration would be so followers could "pray for his physical condition and for the restoration of democratic rule in our land."
Embassy Asylum Concerns
Part of the judge's determination was the potential of the former president's transfer to diplomatic missions near the dwelling, considering that the inquiries revealed a background of arranging to seek refuge through a embassy office", a statement said.
The legal document highlights that the US embassy in the capital, Brasilia, is situated around 8 miles from Bolsonaro's home.
Global Responses
His judicial problems have provoked anger from fellow right-wing populist United States President President Trump, causing him to implement a 50% tariff on imports of Brazilian goods.
Bolsonaro is being held in a federal law enforcement building in Brasilia and will undergo a detention review on the next day.
Recent Legal Requests
It was only on the previous day that the former president's lawyers asked the Top Court to allow him to serve his whole jail sentence under house arrest, with digital surveillance.
They also requested that he be authorized to exit his dwelling for healthcare, saying he needed ongoing care for respiratory ailments and other illnesses.
Details of Guilty Verdict
He was determined responsible of orchestrating a scheme aimed at maintaining his control after he was defeated in the 2022 election to his left-wing rival, President Lula.
High Court judges said that he was aware of a plan which included plans to kill Lula and his running partner, Alckmin, and to detain and kill Justice Moraes - the Supreme Court justice who has been managing the former president's case.
The conspiracy was prevented because it couldn't obtain the endorsement of the army and air force commanders. Lula was sworn in without problem on the first day of 2023.
But a week later, on the eighth of January, thousands of his backers attacked and damaged official structures in the national capital, Brasília.
The law enforcement took action and around 1,500 people were taken into custody.
The judges found that the rioters had been encouraged by the former president whose plan, they said, was for the Brazilian military to step in, reestablish control and return him to office.
At the moment, Bolsonaro's lawyers called the 27 years and three months sentence "absurdly excessive.
He was also barred from running for public office until 2060 - a decade minus two years after the conclusion of his imprisonment.
The former president called the trial a political persecution and said it was intended to stop him participating in the 2026 national vote.
