Former French President Nicolas Sarkozy began serving a five-year prison sentence on Tuesday after being convicted for conspiring to illegally finance his 2007 election campaign with funds from late Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi. This marks a historic downfall for the once-influential leader, making him the first former French head of state to be jailed since World War II collaborator Philippe Pétain.
Sarkozy, who led France from 2007 to 2012, was found guilty of coordinating a plan with aides to secure millions in Libyan cash donations. Although he was acquitted of personally receiving the money, judges ruled that he played a central role in the conspiracy. The 69-year-old has repeatedly denied all charges, calling the case politically driven and an attempt to humiliate him. Despite his appeal, he must serve time while the process continues.
The former president will be held at La Santé prison in Paris, a facility that once housed notorious figures like Carlos the Jackal and Manuel Noriega. Sarkozy will likely stay in the prison’s isolation wing for security reasons, occupying a 9 to 12-square-meter cell with a private shower. He will have access to a landline and a television for a monthly fee of €14. Sarkozy told French media he plans to spend his first week reading, including The Count of Monte Cristo, a novel about a man wrongly imprisoned who seeks revenge.
The ruling has divided France, with Sarkozy’s allies condemning it as excessive. However, a recent Elabe poll for BFM TV revealed that 61% of French citizens support his immediate imprisonment. President Emmanuel Macron, who maintains a cordial relationship with Sarkozy, reportedly met him ahead of his incarceration. The case underscores France’s tougher stance on political corruption and white-collar crime.