Bolsonaro has been detained after authorities determined he posed a definite escape threat while under home confinement.
The one-time leader was found guilty of plotting a armed takeover in last fall and handed more than 27 years in prison, but he was staying under home detention pending court reviews.
Top Judicial Official Justice Moraes said the decision to arrest the 70-year-old politician was a preventative measure after "new facts" were revealed.
This encompassed attempting to break his tracking device and a summons to a demonstration that could facilitate a possible escape.
Judicial Records Show Escape Risks
In a paperwork permitting the detention, Justice Moraes said data from the centre monitoring Bolsonaro's house arrest suggested the one-time head of state's aim to disable the electronic ankle bracelet to guarantee victory in his getaway".
This, it said, would be "facilitated by the disorder caused by the gathering called by his child.
His offspring, Flávio Bolsonaro, who serves as a senator, called for a gathering of his backers near his father's house to take place on the weekend.
The senator wrote on digital networks on last Friday: "Are you going to fight for your nation, or see it all from your smartphone there on your couch? I call on you to battle with us."
He said the gathering would be so supporters could "pray for his physical condition and for the reestablishment of democratic governance in our land."
Diplomatic Refuge Fears
Part of the judge's ruling was the potential of his transfer to diplomatic missions near the residence, considering that the investigations revealed a history of planning to request asylum through a embassy office", a statement said.
The judicial paperwork underscores that the United States embassy in the national capital, Brazil's capital, is situated around 13km from the former president's residence.
International Reactions
Bolsonaro's legal woes have generated frustration from fellow right-wing populist American leader Trump, prompting him to implement a half-rate duty on imports of Brazilian goods.
The former president is being kept in a Federal Police station in Brasilia and will undergo a imprisonment assessment on the next day.
Recent Legal Requests
It was only on Friday that the former president's lawyers asked the Top Court to authorize him to fulfill his full incarceration period under home confinement, with electronic monitoring.
They also requested that Bolsonaro be permitted to exit his dwelling for medical care, saying he needed frequent medical attention for pulmonary infections and other illnesses.
Context of Sentencing
He was found guilty of orchestrating a plot aimed at keeping him in power after he was defeated in the 2022 election to his ideological adversary, Lula.
High Court judges said that he knew of a scheme which involved plans to kill the current president and his vice-presidential running mate, Alckmin, and to imprison and murder Alexandre de Moraes - the top judicial official who has been managing Bolsonaro's trial.
The scheme was stopped because it didn't receive the support of the military leaders. Lula was inaugurated without issue on the first day of 2023.
But a week later, on 8 January, many his followers attacked and damaged government buildings in the national capital, Brazil's capital.
The security forces intervened and around approximately 1,500 persons were taken into custody.
The judges found that the rioters had been encouraged by Bolsonaro whose scheme, they said, was for the country's army to take action, bring back stability and bring him back to power.
At the moment, the legal team called the 27 years and three months sentence unreasonably severe".
He was also banned from campaigning for office until the year 2060 - a decade minus two years after the conclusion of his imprisonment.
The one-time head of state called the trial a targeted investigation" and said it was aimed at blocking him competing in the 2026 national vote.
