Web Desk; Former French president Nicolas Sarkozy began serving a five-year prison sentence on Tuesday after being convicted of conspiring to secure illegal campaign funds from Libya.
The 70-year-old former leader arrived at La Santé prison in Paris, marking a dramatic fall for the man who ruled France from 2007 to 2012.
Sarkozy, hand in hand with his wife Carla Bruni, left his home as supporters chanted “Nicolas, Nicolas” and sang the French national anthem, La Marseillaise.
His imprisonment makes him the first French leader to be jailed since Marshal Philippe Pétain, who was convicted for collaborating with Nazi Germany after World War II.
Shortly after his departure for prison, Sarkozy released a lengthy statement on X (formerly Twitter), declaring his innocence and blaming his conviction on revenge and political hostility. “It is not a former president who is being jailed today; it is an innocent man,” he wrote.
The verdict concluded a long-running legal battle over accusations that Sarkozy’s 2007 presidential campaign received millions in cash from Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi, who was later toppled and killed during the Arab Spring.
While the court ruled that Sarkozy conspired with his aides to arrange the illicit funding, he was acquitted of personally taking or using the money. His lawyers have appealed the sentence and requested early release, which could be considered by December.
At La Santé, Sarkozy is expected to be held in the prison’s isolation unit, where inmates stay in individual cells ranging between nine and twelve square metres.
The cells now include private showers following renovations. He will also have access to a TV and a landline phone. Sarkozy told French newspaper Le Figaro that he planned to take three books, including The Count of Monte Cristo, the story of a man wrongly imprisoned who seeks revenge on his betrayers.
Sarkozy’s imprisonment has stirred political controversy, with many of his allies and supporters condemning the verdict. “Nicolas Sarkozy is not a criminal,” said Jacqueline Fraboulet, one of his supporters outside the prison. “It feels like the justice system is taking political control.”
President Emmanuel Macron and Justice Minister Gérald Darmanin, both known for maintaining cordial relations with Sarkozy, met him before his incarceration — a move that has angered opposition politicians who accused them of undermining judicial independence.
The sentencing reflects a broader shift in France toward stricter accountability for political and financial crimes. While past French politicians often avoided jail, Sarkozy’s imprisonment signals a new era of judicial firmness. Despite his conviction, Sarkozy remains an influential figure within France’s right-wing circles.
