Brazilian police on Tuesday made a preventive arrest of the country's former president, Jair Bolsonaro, days before he is due to begin serving a 27-year prison sentence for an attempted coup, officials said.
A close aide to Bolsonaro said the former president was taken from house arrest to the main police station in Brasilia, while police said they were acting on an order from the Supreme Court.
The former president has been under house arrest since August, and his lawyers pleaded at trial that he serve his sentence at home due to his health condition.
Bolsonaro, who was president of Brazil from 2019 to 2022, is expected to begin serving his sentence next Sunday, after exhausting all appeals against the verdict, local media reported.
One of Bolsonaro's sons, Senator Flavio Bolsonaro, called on his supporters on Thursday to take to the streets and protest in defense of his father, and rallies are expected in front of police headquarters.
Bolsonaro and several of his allies were convicted of attempting to overthrow the government after their defeat in the 2022 presidential election, which was won by incumbent President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva.
Prosecutors allege that the coup plan included the assassination of Lula, as well as inciting a rebellion in early 2023.
Bolsonaro has also been accused of leading an armed criminal organization, and he has denied committing any crime.
He remains one of Brazil's key politicians, although he is ineligible to run until at least 2030, while polls show Bolsonaro would be a strong candidate in next year's elections.
Bolsonaro is an ally of United States President Donald Trump, who has called the former president's trial a "witch hunt."
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