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Former French President Sarkozy Begins a 5-Year Prison Sentence for Campaign Finance Conspiracy

Sarkozy is the first former French president jailed since World War Two for illegal campaign funding, serving a five-year sentence under solitary confinement in Paris.

  • On October 21, 2025, former French President Nicolas Sarkozy presented himself at La Santé prison in Paris to begin serving a five-year sentence, becoming the first modern French leader jailed.
  • The conviction stems from allegations that Gaddafi-backed money financed the 2007 bid, and prosecutors say aides struck a deal with Muammar Gaddafi in 2005 to channel funds to Nicolas Sarkozy's campaign.
  • La Santé administrators describe Nicolas Sarkozy’s confinement in single cells with limited outdoor time; Sebastien Cauwel said `He will be able to access the exercise yard, on his own, twice a day` and pay a 14 euros television fee.
  • Sarkozy's lawyers filed an immediate release request after he was jailed, while his sons and daughter and supporters gathered as President Emmanuel Macron met him before incarceration.
  • The case reflects a judicial trend toward immediate enforcement of sentences via provisional execution orders, with polls from Pollster Elabe showing 58% see the verdict as impartial and 61% support jailing Sarkozy pending appeal.
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French ex-president Sarkozy enters prison after funding conviction

France's ex-president Nicolas Sarkozy became the first former head of an EU state to be jailed Tuesday, again proclaiming his innocence as he entered a Paris prison.

Right

Why the wing where he is being held is considered "privileged" - Sarkozy has access to a gym and a library

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U.S. News broke the news in New York, United States on Monday, October 20, 2025.
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