Former French president Nicolas Sarkozy has been handed a five-year prison sentence after a Paris court found him guilty of criminal conspiracy linked to millions of euros allegedly received from the late Libyan ruler, Muammar Gaddafi.
The 70-year-old, who governed France between 2007 and 2012, was acquitted of other charges including passive corruption and illegal campaign financing. However, Judge Nathalie Gavarino ruled that Sarkozy permitted his closest aides to approach Libyan officials in pursuit of campaign funding.
The sentence, which includes a €100,000 ($117,000) fine, represents an unprecedented moment in French political history. Sarkozy could be sent to prison in the coming days, a striking downfall for a former president who has consistently maintained his innocence.
There was audible shock in the courtroom as the ruling was read. Speaking shortly afterward, Sarkozy described the verdict as “extremely serious for rule of law” and vowed to appeal.
“What happened today… is of extreme gravity in regard to the rule of law, and for the trust one can have in the justice system,” he said outside the courthouse. “If they absolutely want me to sleep in jail, I will sleep in jail, but with my head held high.”
The investigation, launched in 2013, followed accusations from Saif al-Islam, son of Gaddafi, that Sarkozy’s 2007 campaign was bankrolled by Tripoli. Lebanese businessman Ziad Takieddine later claimed he had written evidence that €50m (£43m) was funneled to Sarkozy’s campaign, with payments allegedly continuing even after he assumed the presidency.
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The trial also implicated several figures from Sarkozy’s inner circle. Former interior minister Claude Guéant was convicted of corruption, while another former minister, Brice Hortefeux, was found guilty of criminal conspiracy. Sarkozy’s wife, Italian-born singer and former supermodel Carla Bruni-Sarkozy, is separately facing charges of hiding evidence in connection to the case, which she denies.
This is not Sarkozy’s first brush with the law. In February 2024, he was sentenced to one year in prison—six months suspended—for overspending during his failed 2012 re-election campaign and attempting to conceal it through a PR firm. In 2021, he was also found guilty of attempting to bribe a judge, becoming the first former French president to receive a custodial sentence. That conviction was later adjusted to allow him to serve his time at home with an electronic tag.
Despite his repeated denials and claims of political persecution, Thursday’s verdict marks another sharp blow to Sarkozy’s post-presidency legacy, placing him firmly at the center of one of France’s most high-profile political scandals in decades.
Source: ameyawdebrah.com/
