He knew the outcome of the trial could come at a high cost. Nicolas Sarkozy, former President of the French Republic, now aged 70, has been sentenced by the Paris Criminal Court to five years in prison, part of it to be served, in connection with the so-called Libyan financing of his 2007 presidential campaign. The former president was found guilty of criminal conspiracy for having “allowed his close collaborators to act in order to obtain financial support” from Muammar Gaddafi’s regime, according to the words of the presiding judge.
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The sentence, accompanied by a deferred committal order and provisional enforcement, does not mean immediate incarceration. Nicolas Sarkozy was not taken to prison that night but must present himself within a month to the prosecutor’s office, which will set the date of his detention. Notably, even in the case of an appeal, this safety measure remains applicable. In other words, the former head of state will indeed go to prison — a first in the history of the French Fifth Republic.
Nicolas Sarkozy sentenced to 5 years in prison – he plans to appeal
Although convicted of criminal conspiracy, the ex-president was acquitted of other serious charges: receiving stolen Libyan public funds, passive corruption, and illegal campaign financing. The court ruled that the evidence did not prove that Libyan funds had effectively financed his 2007 campaign. “The material elements of the corruption offense are not established,” stressed the magistrate.
This conviction does not concern Nicolas Sarkozy alone. Two of his former ministers were also targeted by the courts. His former chief of staff, later interior minister, was found guilty of passive corruption and forgery. Another loyal ally of the ex-president was convicted of criminal conspiracy.
A historic conviction for a former head of state
After three months of hearings, the National Financial Prosecutor’s Office had requested seven years in prison against the former president, accusing him of having entered into a “Faustian pact of corruption” with one of the most notorious dictators of recent decades. Since the beginning of the case in 2011, Nicolas Sarkozy has consistently proclaimed his innocence, denouncing what he called judicial and media harassment.
On Thursday, Nicolas Sarkozy announced that he would appeal the decision, calling it of “extreme gravity for the rule of law.”
“What happened today, in this courtroom, is of extreme gravity for the rule of law, for the trust one can have in justice.”
But this decision further burdens his criminal record, already marked by previous convictions. In March 2021, Nicolas Sarkozy was definitively sentenced to one year in prison for corruption and influence peddling in the wiretapping affair, also known as the “Bismuth case.” That sanction forced him to wear an electronic bracelet for several months — an unprecedented situation for a former French president.
The conviction pronounced on Thursday does not end Nicolas Sarkozy’s legal troubles. On October 8, the Court of Cassation is set to examine his appeal in the Bygmalion case. In that case, the former president has already been sentenced on appeal to one year in prison, including six months to be served, for illegal financing of his 2012 presidential campaign.
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Verwendete Quelle:
Translated from French by Ohmymag
