🔗 Share this article

The former French president has stated that his time behind bars has been “exhausting” and a “horrific experience” as he was present via video link at a court hearing regarding his application to complete his jail term at home.

Court Appearance from Prison

The former leader, wearing a dark blue attire, was visible on screen from jail on Monday, seated at a table with his legal representatives beside him. He informed the judges: “I want to acknowledge all the prison staff, who are exceptionally humane, and who have made this nightmare bearable – because it is a nightmare.”

Context of the Legal Situation

Sarkozy entered the correctional facility in Paris on 21 October, after being handed a five-year jail sentence for illegal collaboration over a scheme to obtain funds for his 2007 presidential election campaign from the government of the late Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi.

He has challenged the verdict, but judges ruled that because of the “serious nature” of his conviction, he had to be incarcerated while the legal challenge proceeded.

Historical Importance

Sarkozy, who served as France’s conservative leader between 2007 and 2012, is the first former head of an EU country to serve time in prison, and the initial leader since WWII to go behind bars.

Personal Statement

Sarkozy stated to the judges from prison: “I was completely unaware or intention to ask Mr Gaddafi for any kind of financing … I will never confess to something I am innocent of … I never imagined that at this stage of life, I’d be in prison. It’s an ordeal that has been imposed on me. I confess it’s difficult, it’s extremely challenging. It has an impact on any prisoner because it’s exhausting.”

He stated he would not attempt to enter into contact with any accused individuals or witnesses in the case. He declared: “I’m French, I love my country, my family is in France. This situation has made them suffer a lot.”

Defense Lawyers Comments

His legal representative Jean-Michel Darrois, sitting next to him in the prison video link room, said: “Being in solitary confinement has been very hard for him.” He commented on Sarkozy: “He’s a strong, robust and courageous man and this detention has been very painful for him.”

In court, another of Sarkozy’s lawyers, Christophe Ingrain, who had seen him daily, said Sarkozy would be safer out of prison than within. “He has faced death threats, has heard screaming at night and the emergency response in a adjacent room when a prisoner self-harmed,” he said.

Current Status

The state prosecutor Damien Brunet asked that Sarkozy’s request for release be approved. The court will announce its decision on Monday afternoon.

Incarceration Details

Sarkozy has been held in solitary confinement for his own security, in an individual cell of about 97 square feet, with his own shower and toilet. Two bodyguards are stationed nearby to ensure his safety.

Reports suggested that he had been eating only yoghurt in prison as he was concerned any food might have been tampered with. He had been offered the facilities to cook for himself but refused this.

Encouragement from the Public

His online presence last week posted a recording of piles of letters, cards and parcels it claimed had been sent to him, including a collage, a sweet treat and a volume. “No letter will go unanswered,” his account announced. “The end of the story has not yet been written.”

Items in Prison

The former leader brought with him a biography of Jesus as well as The Count of Monte Cristo, Alexandre Dumas’s novel in which an wrongly accused individual is sentenced to jail but breaks out to seek retribution.

Legal Proceedings Details

During Sarkozy’s three-month trial, the state attorney had informed the judges that Sarkozy engaged in a “Faustian pact of dishonesty with one of the worst rulers of the last three decades.

Sarkozy maintained his innocence and stated he had not been involved in a criminal conspiracy to seek election funding from Libya.

He was found not guilty of three distinct accusations of corruption, misuse of Libyan public funds and illegal election campaign funding. After the state prosecutor also challenged these not guilty verdicts, Sarkozy will be judged again on all the accusations next year, including criminal conspiracy.

Previous Convictions

Although the claims of a clandestine financial agreement with the North African government formed the most significant legal case Sarkozy had encountered, he had already been found guilty in two different proceedings and lost France’s top honor, the Légion d’honneur.

The former president had previously become the initial ex-leader forced to wear an monitoring device after being convicted in a different matter of corruption and influence peddling. In that case, he was given a 12-month sentence but was able to serve it with an electronic tag worn around the ankle. He had the device for three months before being allowed limited freedom.