Former French President Nicolas Sarkozy is due to appear in court on Monday to appeal his conviction for criminal conspiracy linked to alleged attempts to secure campaign funding from Libya.
Sarkozy was last year sentenced to five years in prison, becoming the first post-war French president to receive a custodial sentence. The former leader, who served as President of France from 2007 to 2012, was briefly incarcerated in October at La Santé Prison before being released three weeks later under judicial supervision, including a ban on leaving the country.
The case stems from long-standing allegations that Sarkozy’s successful 2007 presidential campaign received millions of euros in cash from Libya during the rule of former leader Muammar Gaddafi.
Prosecutors alleged that Sarkozy struck a deal with the Libyan government in 2005 while serving as France’s interior minister, promising to help improve Libya’s international standing in exchange for campaign financing.
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Sarkozy has consistently denied the accusations.
Judges ruled that there was no direct proof that Sarkozy personally made such an agreement with Gaddafi or that Libyan funds reached his campaign, although they said the timing of financial movements was “compatible” with the allegations and the routes taken by the money were “very opaque”.
However, the court concluded that Sarkozy was guilty of criminal conspiracy between 2005 and 2007, stating that he allowed close aides to contact Libyan officials in an effort to secure campaign funding.
In a joint statement, rights groups Sherpa, Anticor and Transparency International France said: “The fight against corruption is not just a matter of integrity: it is a prerequisite for protecting the rule of law and maintaining effective democracy.”
Sarkozy’s lawyer, Christophe Ingrain, declined to comment ahead of the opening of the appeal hearing.
The appeal proceedings are expected to revisit years of legal disputes surrounding the allegations, which have cast a long shadow over Sarkozy’s political legacy.
