Three weeks instead of five years. Court releases former French President Sarkozy from prison 0 7

The Paris Court of Appeal on Monday, November 10, ruled to release former French President Nicolas Sarkozy from prison and place him under judicial supervision, reports BFM TV. Thus, the court granted the prosecution's request at a hearing on the appeal of the 70-year-old Sarkozy, who had been in prison for nearly three weeks.

Sarkozy called his time in prison "exhausting"

After his release from prison, the ex-president, convicted of illegal campaign financing, is required to wear an electronic bracelet on his ankle. He is prohibited from contacting the accused and witnesses in his case.

Speaking at the hearing via video link, Nicolas Sarkozy described his imprisonment as "very difficult" and "exhausting." For their part, the former president's lawyers demanded his early release.

The first case in post-war French history

Nicolas Sarkozy, who was sentenced to five years in prison at the end of September, began serving this sentence on October 21 at the Paris Santé prison. He was placed in a single cell measuring 9 square meters. Visits to Sarkozy were allowed three times a week, and he had the opportunity to use a mobile phone, but calls were only permitted to numbers approved by law enforcement. He was placed under guard in prison.

Sarkozy became the first French leader of the post-war period and the first former president of an EU state to end up in prison. Due to his advanced age, he could apply for a reduction in his sentence.

Sarkozy found guilty of illegal campaign financing

Earlier, a court in Paris found the former French president guilty of conspiracy in the case of illegal Libyan financing of the 2007 election campaign. According to the French prosecution, former Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi transferred about 50 million euros to support Sarkozy's 2007 election campaign during his rule. However, Sarkozy was acquitted on all other counts - embezzlement of public funds, passive corruption, and violations in campaign financing.

On December 18, 2024, the Paris Court of Cassation refused to change the decision of the Court of Appeal regarding Sarkozy, implying one year of actual imprisonment for another case - corruption, influence peddling, and pressure on the investigation. As a result, Sarkozy spent a year under house arrest with an electronic bracelet. The case was related to suspicions that while serving as president, the politician attempted to influence the course of the investigation into donations from L'Oréal co-owner Liliane Bettencourt and used them to finance his new election campaign.

The French authorities stripped Sarkozy of the Legion of Honor and the Order of Merit - the first such case since 1945.