He was held in a cell in the isolation wing of the jail due to threats to his safety. The BBC reported he had a toilet, a shower, a desk and a small electric hob in his cell. He also had access to a small television, costly $US16 ($24) a month.
Monday’s proceedings didn’t involve the motives for the sentencing.
Still, Sarkozy told the court he never asked Libya’s longtime ruler Moammar Gadhafi for any financing. “I will never admit something I didn’t do,” he said.
Sarkozy, 70, pictured with his wife, said prison was “a nightmare”. Credit: AP
French law provides that release should be the general rule pending appeal, while detention should be reserved for those considered dangerous or at risk of fleeing to another country, or to protect evidence or prevent pressure on witnesses.
Sarkozy’s lawyer, Christophe Ingrain, praised “normal implementation of law” in a brief statement. “The next step is the appeal trial and our work now … is to get prepared for that,” he said.
Banned from meeting justice minister
In a rare decision, the court specifically banned Sarkozy from being in touch with Justice Minister Gérald Darmanin.
Darmanin, a former conservative who once considered Sarkozy as his mentor before rejoining President Emmanuel Macron’s centrist party in 2017, paid him a visit in prison last month. Some French magistrates criticised the move as undermining the independence of judges.
Sarkozy, who governed from 2007 to 2012, faces separate proceedings, including a November 26 ruling by France’s highest court over illegal financing of his failed 2012 re-election bid, and an ongoing investigation into alleged witness tampering in the Libya case.
In 2023, he was found guilty of corruption and influence peddling for trying to bribe a magistrate in exchange for information about a legal case in which he was implicated. France’s highest court, the Court of Cassation, later upheld the verdict.
AP
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