Bolsonaro has been arrested after authorities determined he posed a serious risk of fleeing while under home confinement.
The ex-president was convicted of plotting a government overthrow in September and sentenced more than 27 years in jail, but he continued under confinement pending legal challenges.
Brazilian Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes said the action to imprison the septuagenarian politician was a preventative measure after "new facts" were revealed.
This included attempting to break his ankle monitor and a summons to a demonstration that could enable a possible escape.
Legal Document Reveals Flight Fears
In a document approving the custody, Justice Moraes said data from the centre monitoring the former president's confinement suggested the former leader's "intention to break the tracking monitor to guarantee victory in his flight.
This, it said, would be made easier by the disorder caused by the gathering called by his son.
His son, Flávio Bolsonaro, who serves as a legislator, called for a gathering of his supporters near the former president's residence to take place on Saturday evening.
Flávio Bolsonaro wrote on social media on last Friday: "Are you going to fight for your country, or see it all from your phone there on your settee? I call on you to fight with us."
He said the gathering would be so followers could seek divine intervention for his physical condition and for the restoration of democratic rule in our nation."
Foreign Shelter Risks
Part of the judge's decision was the chance of the former president's "relocation to foreign missions near the dwelling, considering that the inquiries revealed a background of organizing to seek refuge through a consular facility", a statement said.
The court filing emphasizes that the American diplomatic mission in the capital, Brazil's capital, is situated around 13km from the former president's residence.
Worldwide Consequences
Bolsonaro's legal woes have generated frustration from fellow conservative nationalist US President Donald Trump, leading him to impose a 50% tariff on goods coming from Brazil.
Bolsonaro is being detained in a Federal Police station in Brasilia and will have a detention review on Sunday.
Latest Court Petitions
It was only on the previous day that the ex-leader's attorneys asked the Top Court to allow him to fulfill his full incarceration period under domestic detention, with tracking devices.
They also requested that he be allowed to leave his home for healthcare, saying he required ongoing care for lung conditions and other health problems.
Details of Guilty Verdict
Bolsonaro was convicted of leading a conspiracy aimed at maintaining his control after he was defeated in the national vote to his ideological adversary, Lula.
Supreme Court justices said that he was aware of a plan which included plans to murder the current president and his VP candidate, his vice-presidential candidate, and to imprison and murder Justice Moraes - the Supreme Court justice who has been managing the former president's case.
The conspiracy was stopped because it failed to get the backing of the armed forces officials. Lula was took office without issue on 1 January 2023.
But a following week, on the eighth of January, numerous his backers invaded and destroyed public facilities in the federal district, Brazil's capital.
The law enforcement stepped in and around fifteen hundred individuals were detained.
The justices found that the rioters had been provoked by the former president whose scheme, they said, was for the Brazilian military to step in, reestablish control and reinstate his authority.
At the period, his attorneys called the 27 years and three months sentence unreasonably severe".
He was also barred from running for public office until twenty-sixty - a decade minus two years after the completion of his term.
The one-time head of state called the legal proceedings a targeted investigation" and said it was aimed at blocking him running in the 2026 presidential election.
