The former Brazilian leader has been taken into custody after authorities found he posed a concrete flight risk while under house arrest.
The former head of state was convicted of orchestrating a military coup in last fall and handed more than over two decades in incarceration, but he remained under home detention pending legal challenges.
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 trying to remove his ankle monitor and a call for a supporters' gathering that could facilitate a chance to flee".
Judicial Records Show Escape Risks
In a filing authorising the custody, the magistrate said intelligence from the unit overseeing his home detention suggested the former leader's plan to remove the tracking monitor to ensure success in his escape.
This, it said, would be made easier by the disorder caused by the protest called by his son.
His offspring, his son Flávio, who works as a senator, called for a assembly of his backers near the former president's residence to take place on the weekend.
Flávio Bolsonaro wrote on digital networks on last Friday: "Are you going to fight for your country, or observe everything from your phone there on your couch? I call on you to fight with us."
He said the demonstration would be so backers could "pray for his well-being and for the return of democracy in our nation."
Diplomatic Refuge Fears
Part of the judge's decision was the chance of the former president's "relocation to diplomatic missions near the home, considering that the investigations revealed a history of planning to request asylum through a embassy office", a announcement said.
The judicial paperwork highlights that the US embassy in the national capital, Brazil's capital, is situated around 13km from his dwelling.
Global Responses
Bolsonaro's legal woes have provoked anger from fellow right-wing populist United States President Trump, causing him to enact a half-rate duty on goods coming from Brazil.
The former president is being held in a federal law enforcement building 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 former president's lawyers asked the High Court to authorize him to serve his whole jail sentence under home confinement, with electronic monitoring.
They also requested that the former president be allowed to exit his dwelling for medical treatment, saying he demanded ongoing care for respiratory ailments and other illnesses.
Background on Conviction
He was convicted of heading a scheme aimed at retaining his authority after he was defeated in the presidential race to his left-wing rival, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.
Top judicial officials said that he was aware of a scheme which included plans to kill the current president and his running partner, Geraldo Alckmin, and to detain and kill Alexandre de Moraes - the High Court judge who has been presiding over his judicial proceedings.
The conspiracy was stopped because it failed to get the endorsement of the military leaders. The current president was sworn in without issue on 1 January 2023.
But a week later, on 8 January, numerous his followers stormed and vandalised official structures in the federal district, the capital city.
The security forces stepped in and around 1,500 people were arrested.
The judges found that the demonstrators had been provoked by Bolsonaro whose plan, they said, was for the country's army to intervene, reestablish control and return him to office.
At the time, his attorneys called the 27 years and three months sentence unreasonably severe".
He was also prohibited from seeking elected position until 2060 - eight years after the conclusion of his imprisonment.
The ex-leader called the trial a "witch hunt and said it was intended to stop him participating in the 2026 national vote.
