🔗 Share this article

Ex-president Nicolas Sarkozy has declared that his period of incarceration has been “exhausting” and a “nightmare” as he was present via remote connection at a court hearing regarding his petition to serve his sentence at home.

Court Appearance from Prison

Sarkozy, dressed in a navy blue suit, was visible on screen from prison on Monday, positioned at a desk with his legal representatives beside him. He informed the judges: “I want to commend all the correctional officers, who are remarkably compassionate, and who have eased this difficult situation – because it is a horrific experience.”

Background of the Legal Situation

The former president entered the correctional facility in Paris on 21 October, after being handed a five-year jail sentence for criminal conspiracy over a scheme to obtain funds for his election bid from the government of the late Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi.

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

Historical Significance

The former leader, who was France’s conservative leader between 2007 and 2012, is the first former head of an EU country to be imprisoned in prison, and the first French postwar leader to go behind bars.

Emotional Testimony

The former president stated to the judges from prison: “I never had any idea or desire to ask Mr Gaddafi for any kind of financing … I will not admit to something I didn’t do … I never imagined that at 70 years of age, I’d be in prison. It’s an ordeal that has been forced upon me. I confess it’s difficult, it’s very hard. It leaves a mark on any prisoner because it’s gruelling.”

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 am patriotic, my family is in France. This situation has caused them pain a lot.”

Defense Lawyers Observations

Sarkozy’s lawyer Jean-Michel Darrois, sitting next to him in the remote connection facility, stated: “Being in isolation has been very hard for him.” He commented on Sarkozy: “He’s a strong, durable and courageous man and this imprisonment has been very painful for him.”

In court, another of Sarkozy’s lawyers, Christophe Ingrain, who had seen him daily, asserted Sarkozy would be safer outside jail than inside. “He has faced death threats, has heard screaming at night and the emergency response in a neighbouring cell when a prisoner injured themselves,” 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.

Prison Conditions

Sarkozy has been placed in isolation for his own safety, in an private room of about 9 sq metres, with his own shower and restroom. Security personnel are stationed nearby to protect him.

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

Support from Outside

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

Items in Prison

The former leader took into prison a biography of Jesus as well as the classic novel, Alexandre Dumas’s novel in which an wrongly accused individual is sentenced to jail but escapes to take revenge.

Court Case Details

During Sarkozy’s three-month trial, the public prosecutor had told the court that Sarkozy engaged in a “Faustian pact of dishonesty with one of the most unspeakable dictators of the last three decades.

The accused denied wrongdoing and stated he had not been part of a criminal conspiracy to obtain campaign finances from Libya.

He was acquitted of three distinct accusations of dishonesty, improper handling of state money and unlawful political financing. After the state prosecutor also appealed against these acquittals, Sarkozy will be re-tried on all the charges next year, including illegal collaboration.

Previous Convictions

Although the allegations of a secret campaign funding pact with the Libyan regime formed the most significant legal case Sarkozy had faced, he had already been convicted in two different proceedings and stripped of France’s highest distinction, the national recognition.

Sarkozy had previously become the first former French head of state forced to wear an monitoring device after being convicted in a separate case of corruption and improper sway. In that case, he was given a one-year jail term but was able to serve it with an ankle monitor attached to his leg. He had the device for three months before being allowed limited freedom.