rki.news
Paris, October 21 – Former French President Nicolas Sarkozy has begun serving a five-year prison sentence after being convicted of criminal conspiracy related to alleged campaign financing from the late Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi.
Sarkozy, 70, arrived at La Santé Prison in Paris on Tuesday morning. The Paris Criminal Court had sentenced him on September 25 to five years in prison, ruling that the conviction would take immediate effect due to the “exceptional seriousness” of the offenses. He becomes the first former French president in modern history to serve a custodial sentence.
Earlier in the day, Sarkozy posted a statement on the social media platform X, denouncing the verdict as a “judicial scandal.” He insisted on his innocence, writing, “It is not a former president being imprisoned today — it is an innocent man.”
His lawyer, Christophe Ingrain, confirmed that a formal request for release has been submitted while the appeal is pending.
The case, which stems from allegations of Libyan funding for Sarkozy’s 2007 presidential campaign, continues to attract widespread attention both in France and internationally.