Former French President Convicted
Former French President Nicolas Sarkozy has been sentenced to five years in prison after being found guilty of criminal conspiracy in connection with alleged Libyan funding of his 2007 election campaign.
The 70-year-old was cleared of several other charges, including passive corruption, illegal campaign financing, and concealing the embezzlement of public funds.
Judges at the Paris court delivered the ruling on Wednesday following a high-profile three-month trial that drew international attention.
Denies Allegations
Sarkozy, who has consistently denied wrongdoing, described the prosecution as politically motivated.
Prosecutors had pushed for a seven-year jail term, insisting the evidence demonstrated a covert flow of money from Libya under former leader Muammar Gaddafi.
The former president appeared in court alongside his wife, singer and model Carla Bruni-Sarkozy, and his three sons.
Previous Convictions
Earlier this year, Sarkozy was stripped of the Legion of Honour, France’s highest decoration, following a separate conviction for corruption.
In that case, he was found guilty of attempting to bribe a magistrate for confidential information about a legal inquiry in 2014.
He received a one-year electronic tag sentence, partly suspended, and was later permitted to remove the device due to his age.
Campaign Finance Breaches
In another ruling last year, Sarkozy was sentenced to a year of house arrest after overspending during his failed 2012 re-election campaign.
The court found that he had nearly doubled the legal spending limit, undermining French campaign finance laws.
Despite this series of convictions, Sarkozy has continued to wield influence within France’s conservative political movement.
Sarkozy Calls Case a Plot
During his most recent trial, Sarkozy branded the allegations a “plot” orchestrated by the “Gaddafi clan” and political enemies.
He argued that the case was an act of revenge for his decision to support Gaddafi’s removal during the Libyan uprising in 2011.
Origins of Allegations
The controversy dates back to 2011 when a Libyan news agency reported that Gaddafi claimed to have secretly financed Sarkozy’s campaign.
A year later, investigative outlet Mediapart published a Libyan intelligence memo suggesting a €50m (£43.7m) funding deal, which Sarkozy dismissed as fake and sued for defamation.
French magistrates later ruled the document authentic, though it was not cited as evidence in the trial.
Co-Defendants Convicted
Alongside Sarkozy, 11 others were tried, including former ministers Claude Guéant and Brice Hortefeux.
Both men, once close allies of Sarkozy, were convicted of criminal association but acquitted on other charges.
Spotlight on Franco-Libyan Ties
The case exposed the depth of France’s dealings with Libya in the mid-2000s as Gaddafi sought to reintegrate with the West.
Investigators scrutinised trips made to Tripoli by Sarkozy’s associates when he was interior minister between 2005 and 2007.
Key Witness Dies in Beirut
One of the central figures, businessman Ziad Takieddine, had initially claimed he delivered cash-filled suitcases from Tripoli to Sarkozy’s ministry.
He later retracted his statement, sparking a separate probe into possible witness interference that has yet to reach trial.
Takieddine, aged 75, died this week in Beirut, according to his lawyer, Elise Arfi. He had fled to Lebanon in 2020 and did not attend the Paris hearings.
Editing by M10News International Desk | Contact: international@m10news.com
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