Former French president Nicolas Sarkozy’s request to be released from jail pending appeal will be heard in a Paris court on Monday, weeks after he began serving a five-year prison sentence for conspiring to raise campaign funds from Libya.
The 70-year-old former conservative leader was found guilty of criminal conspiracy over efforts by close aides to secure financing for his 2007 presidential campaign from the late Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi. Sarkozy was acquitted of other charges, including corruption and receiving illegal campaign financing.
Judge Nathalie Gavarino said the sentence was to be enforced immediately due to the “extraordinary seriousness” of the crime. Sarkozy was incarcerated last month at La Santé prison in Paris a stunning fall from grace for a man who led France from 2007 to 2012.
Sarkozy has consistently denied wrongdoing and has appealed the verdict, calling himself a victim of revenge and hatred. He will not personally attend Monday’s hearing but will be represented by his lawyers before the appeals court.
Attorney Christophe Ingrain said after Sarkozy’s imprisonment that his client did not meet any of the legal grounds for “provisional detention”, adding that Sarkozy had always complied with judicial requirements and court appearances.
Under French criminal law, provisional detention is allowed only to prevent further criminal activity or to ensure that the accused remains available to the justice system.
If the court agrees to release him, Sarkozy could be required to wear an electronic tag, deposit bail money, or check in regularly with authorities.
Sarkozy has faced several legal battles since leaving office. Last year, France’s highest court upheld a conviction for corruption and influence peddling, ordering him to wear an electronic monitoring tag for one year the first such measure imposed on a former French head of state. The tag has since been removed.
Also last year, an appeals court confirmed a separate conviction for illegal campaign financing related to his failed 2012 re-election bid. A final ruling from France’s highest court on that case is expected later this month.
Sarkozy, once one of France’s most dominant political figures, has continued to maintain his innocence across multiple cases, insisting that the legal proceedings against him are politically motivated.
Erizia Rubyjeana
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