Paris court sentences former French President Sarkozy to five years in prison

PARIS — A Paris court on Thursday sentenced former French President Nicolas Sarkozy to five years in prison "with deferred effect" while also imposing an immediate five-year ban on holding any public function and a fine of €100,000.

The court's ruling came as Sarkozy was found guilty of criminal conspiracy, in a case where he was on trial for allegedly accepting illegal campaign financing from the regime of Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi to secure win in 2007 election, Euro News reported.

The court on Thursday, however, acquitted Sarkozy of passive corruption, embezzlement of Libyan public funds and illegal election campaign financing. The court stated that the criminal conspiracy charges pertain to his involvement in a group that orchestrated a corruption offence from 2005 to 2007, as per the report.

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Sarkozy, who served as France's President between 2007 and 2012, can file appeal against court's verdict. He could also request court for conditional release due to his age. According to French law, Sarkozy is to be summoned within one month by the public prosecutor's office, which will notify him regarding the date of his imprisonment. The Paris court's decision makes Sarkozy (70), the first former French President of being convicted of such a high-level criminal offence.

Prosecutors have accused Sarkozy of being involved in a deal with Gaddafi in exchange for money for his election campaign, suggesting he helped rehabilitate Libya’s standing in the world and promised leniency for Gaddafi’s brother-in-law, Abdallah Senoussi, convicted in France for an airline bombing that claimed lives of 170 people.

During the three-month trial earlier this year, judges investigated evidence, including trips to Tripoli in 2005, money transfers through offshore accounts and claims that Sarkozy's government protected Gaddafi’s former chief of staff, Bechir Saleh. The judges even analysed the suspicious death of a Libyan oil minister whose notes stated payments "for Sarkozy."

Sarkozy has denied accusations, stressing that there is “not a shred of proof” that links Libyan funds to his campaign. His lawyers contended that the case relies on unreliable documents and testimony. In the case, 11 co-defendants, including three former ministers have also been implicated, Euro News reported.

This case adds to legal troubles faced by former French President. He has been convicted in two other cases as well - the “Bygmalion affair” over his presidential campaign spending in 2012 and the so-called “Bismuth case” which involves corruption and influence peddling. Sarkozy had to wear an electronic ankle bracelet from January-May, a punishment for former French President. He has filed an appeal with the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR).