Nicolas Sarkozy enters prison to begin five-year sentence over criminal conspiracy | Nicolas Sarkozy

Former French president Nicolas Sarkozy has been jailed in Paris after a court sentenced him to five years in prison for criminal conspiracy related to a scheme to obtain campaign funds from the regime of the late Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi.

The right-wing president of France from 2007 to 2012 is the first former president of an EU country to be imprisoned and the first post-war French leader to go behind bars.

Sarkozy, who is appealing his conviction, tried to avoid being photographed at the gates of La Santé prison, south of Paris. Instead, he organized a highly stage-controlled departure from his home in the west of the capital, where he walked with his wife, Carla Bruni, to greet dozens of supporters on the street outside.

His children, led first by his 14-year-old daughter Giulia with Bruni, slowly emerged from his home to greet well-wishers. Louis Sarkozy, one of Sarkozy’s sons, who is preparing to run for mayor in Menton on the French Riviera next spring, called on his supporters to demonstrate on the street. Some chanted “Free Nicolas!” he shouted. and we carried framed photographs. At the same time, a message was published on Sarkozy’s social media account, in which he said “I am innocent” and that his detention was a “judicial scandal”.

70-year-old Sarkozy hugged his wife in front of television cameras and supporters, and was then taken to La Santé accompanied by his lawyers. His car was driven through a gate to prevent photographers from seeing him on foot. As the prison doors closed, reporters outside heard some prisoners whistling. Someone shouted: “Sarkozy is here.” Another said: “Welcome Sarkozy!” he shouted.

Sarkozy was convicted last month of criminal conspiracy in connection with a scheme to receive funds from the Gaddafi regime for his successful 2007 French presidential election campaign. Chief judge Nathalie Gavarino justified the five-year prison sentence, saying the facts of the case were of “exceptional importance” and would “likely undermine the confidence of citizens.”

Sarkozy’s lawyers requested release as soon as he entered prison, and the appeals court has two months to review the request. In such cases, the court may order release under judicial supervision or house arrest with ankle tagging. The court may also rule against the prisoner’s release if it considers that this is the only way to prevent, for example, tampering with evidence or intimidation of witnesses.

During the three-month trial, the prosecutor told the court that Sarkozy had made “a Faustian corruption pact with one of the most unspeakable dictators of the last 30 years” to secure election financing from Gaddafi.

Sarkozy was acquitted of charges of corruption, misuse of Libyan public funds and illegal election campaign financing.

Sarkozy denied wrongdoing at his trial and said he was not part of a criminal conspiracy to obtain election financing from Libya. He appealed his conviction. A new trial is expected in about six months, but the nature of Sarkozy’s prison sentence means he must remain in prison while his appeal process continues.

Sarkozy had packed family photos and three books, including a biography of Jesus and Alexandre Dumas’s novel The Count of Monte Cristo, about an innocent man sentenced to prison but escapes to take revenge. He said he would use his time in prison to write a book.

For his own safety, he is expected to be kept alone in a single cell of approximately 9 square metres, with his own shower and toilet. There will be no cell phone, but there will be a small television. A security-controlled phone line will allow him to communicate with his lawyers and family. He is expected to have the right to see his family twice a week. He told Le Figaro he was advised to wear earplugs. “At night you hear a lot of noise, yelling, screaming,” he said.

Sarkozy became the first French leader to be imprisoned since Philippe Pétain, the leader of France’s Nazi collaborator Vichy regime, who was imprisoned after the Second World War.

A union of prison guards protested outside the prison overcrowding in French prisons, where many inmates, unlike Sarkozy, have mattresses on the floor.

According to a survey by Elabe, six in 10 French people believe that a prison sentence is “fair”.

However, Sarkozy still receives support from the French right. Emmanuel Macron welcomed Sarkozy to the Élysée Palace on Friday. “In this context, it was normal on a human level to acknowledge one of my predecessors,” Macron told reporters.

Olivier Faure, leader of the socialist party, criticized Macron for the invitation. “This is a strain on the justice system. It gives the sense that there are some defendants who are inherently different from others,” he said.

Justice Minister Gérald Darmanin, who is Sarkozy’s political protégé, said that he would visit Sarkozy in prison as part of his ministerial duty.

Some notorious prisoners spent time at La Santé, including Venezuelan militant Ilich Ramírez Sánchez, also known as Carlos the Jackal, who has since been moved elsewhere.

More recently, French modeling agent Jean-Luc Brunel, a close friend of convicted US sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, was found dead in his cell in La Santé in 2022. He was accused of raping minors.