Bolsonaro has been detained after authorities determined he posed a concrete flight risk while under domestic detention.
The former head of state was sentenced of planning a military coup in last fall and given more than over two decades in jail, but he was staying under house arrest pending legal challenges.
Brazilian Supreme Court Justice Justice Moraes said the action to imprison the elderly politician was a precautionary step after "new facts" were revealed.
This encompassed seeking to disable his ankle monitor and a call for a public vigil that could enable a possible escape.
Legal Document Reveals Escape Risks
In a document approving the detention, Justice Moraes said information from the facility tracking the former president's confinement suggested the former leader's "intention to break the electronic ankle bracelet to ensure success in his escape.
This, it said, would be assisted by the chaos caused by the gathering called by his offspring.
His son, his son Flávio, who holds office as a legislator, called for a assembly of his supporters near Bolsonaro's home to take place on the weekend.
His son wrote on social media on the previous day: "Are you going to fight for your country, or see it all from your smartphone there on your settee? I invite you to battle with us."
He said the gathering would be so supporters could "pray for his well-being and for the restoration of democratic rule in our land."
Foreign Shelter Risks
Part of Justice Moraes's ruling was the chance of Bolsonaro's move to diplomatic missions near the home, considering that the investigations revealed a background of planning to request asylum through a diplomatic representation", a statement said.
The judicial paperwork emphasizes that the United States embassy in the national capital, Brasilia, is situated around 13km from Bolsonaro's home.
Global Responses
Bolsonaro's legal woes have provoked anger from fellow conservative nationalist US President Donald Trump, causing him to enact a half-rate duty on imports of Brazilian goods.
The former president is being held in a Federal Police station in the capital and will have a custody hearing on the next day.
Latest Court Petitions
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 home confinement, with electronic monitoring.
They also petitioned that Bolsonaro be authorized to depart his residence for medical treatment, saying he required ongoing care for pulmonary infections and other ailments.
Background on Conviction
Bolsonaro was determined responsible of orchestrating a conspiracy aimed at keeping him in power after he failed to win the presidential race to his political opponent, Lula.
Top judicial officials said that he had knowledge of a plot which involved plans to murder his opponent and his vice-presidential running mate, Alckmin, and to arrest and execute Alexandre de Moraes - the Supreme Court justice who has been overseeing Bolsonaro's trial.
The conspiracy was stopped because it didn't receive the endorsement of the armed forces officials. His successor was took office without problem on the first day of 2023.
But a following week, on 8 January, thousands of his followers stormed and vandalised government buildings in the national capital, Brazil's capital.
The police stepped in and around approximately 1,500 persons were detained.
The magistrates found that the demonstrators had been incited by him whose scheme, they said, was for the Brazilian military to step in, restore order and return him to office.
At the time, his attorneys called the over 27-year sentence unreasonably severe".
He was also barred from campaigning for office until the year 2060 - eight years after the end of his sentence.
The former president called the legal proceedings a "witch hunt and said it was aimed at blocking him competing in the 2026 national vote.
