Brazil’s Supreme Court has ordered the preemptive arrest of former far-right President Jair Bolsonaro, with a judge claiming he was intent on escaping just days before he was set to begin his prison sentence for leading a coup attempt.

The 70-year-old politician was taken to the headquarters of the country’s federal police in the capital, Brasilia, from his house arrest on Saturday.

Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes, who oversaw the case, said in his ruling that Bolsonaro’s ankle monitor, which he has worn since July 18 for being deemed a flight risk, was violated at 12:08am (03:08 GMT) on Saturday.

“That information shows the intent of the convict to break the ankle monitoring to assure his escape is successful, which would be made easier by the confusion that would be caused by a demonstration organised by his son,” the justice said.

He said there was a chance of Bolsonaro fleeing to embassies in his neighbourhood to request political asylum. The Supreme Court justice also mentioned other defendants in the coup case and political allies of the former president leaving Brazil to avoid jail.

The development comes days before the former president was set to begin his 27-year prison sentence for leading a coup attempt.

Sentenced for coup attempt

Local media reported that Bolsonaro, who was Brazil’s president from 2019 to 2022, was expected to begin serving his sentence sometime next week after the far-right leader exhausted all appeals of his conviction for leading a coup attempt.

Bolsonaro’s legal team had previously argued that he should serve his sentence for a botched coup bid in 2022 at home, arguing imprisonment would pose a risk to his health.

Bolsonaro was convicted in September over his bid to prevent President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva from taking power following the 2022 election, which he lost.

The effort saw crowds of rioters storm government buildings a week after Lula’s inauguration, evoking comparisons with the January 6 riot at the United States Capitol after his close ally, President Donald Trump, lost the 2020 election to Joe Biden.

Trump has branded the prosecution of his far-right ally a “witch-hunt” and made it a major issue in US relations with Brazil, imposing stiff tariffs on the country as a form of retribution.

Trump and Lula held what Brazil described as a constructive meeting on the sidelines of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) summit in Kuala Lumpur last month, raising hope for improved relations after stinging US tariffs.

Lula said the meeting with Trump was “great” and added that their countries’ negotiating teams would get to work “immediately” to tackle tariffs and other issues.