Former conservative French President Nicolas Sarkozy, who was in power from 2007 to 2012, has been found guilty of corruption and abusing his power and sentenced to three years in jail, with two of these years suspended. He was found guilty alongside co-defendants Thierry Herzog, his former lawyer and friend, and former magistrate Gilbert Azibert.
Sarkozy was convicted for attempting to illegally gather information from senior magistrate Azibert in February 2014. At the time, Sarkozy was subject to an investigation (which has since been dropped) into the financing of his 2007 presidential campaign.
Prosecutors discovered that Sarkozy and Herzog had conspired to promise Azibert a job in Monaco in exchange for information on a case that was looking into illegal financing of his campaign by L'Oréal heiress Liliane Bettencourt.
Although Azibert never secured the job, Sarkozy’s “clearly stated promise” alone is tantamount to corruption under French law. Wiretapped conversations revealed that Sarkozy told Herzog, I’ll make (Azibert) move up… I’ll help him.” Sarkozy communicated with Herzog through mobile phones registered to the alias “Paul Bismuth”. Therefore, The court determined that Sarkozy, Herzog, and Azibert had signed a “pact of corruption”, and said that these claims are supported through “consistent and serious evidence”.
Sarkozy will be subjected to another trial on March 17 alongside 13 other people over charges of illegal financing of his 2012 presidential campaign, when his party spent €42.8 million, virtually double the amount allowed. Despite this, Socialist candidate Francois Hollande emerged victorious. He also faces a third trial for having allegedly accepted millions in donations from former Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi for his 2007 presidential campaign. Furthermore, in January, prosecutors launched an investigation into advisory roles he has taken on in Russia, for which can prospectively be charged with “laundering of crime or misdemeanour”.
Despite these several scandals, Sarkozy has attempted a return to politics. In 2013, he briefly became the leader of the conservative UMP party, which has since been renamed Les Républicains (LR). Under this party, he ran for president in 2016, but did not even make it past the party’s primaries. Nevertheless, he is thought to be a close advisor to current president Emmanuel Macron and it has even been mooted that he could seek to run for office once again in 2022 against Macron.
Following the sentencing, Sarkozy’s lawyer, Jacqueline Laffont said, “The president is calm, he is determined,” adding, “We will appeal, he is presumed innocent. We don’t doubt the appeal court will overturn the sentence.”
Christian Jacob, the president of LR, said that the verdict was “absolutely disproportionate and exposes the judicial system’s persecution [of Sarkozy].” Furthermore, Michel Barnier, the EU’s former chief Brexit negotiator, who is seeking to return to French politics, said, “I simply want to reiterate my friendship with President Sarkozy. His decision to appeal is completely legitimate.”
The court ruled that Sarkozy can serve his sentence via house arrest with an electronic bracelet, given that is sentence is less than two years. This represents the second time in modern French history that a former president has been convicted of corruption, after Jacque Chirac.
Former French President Sarkozy Convicted of Corruption, Sentenced to Prison
Nicolas Sarkozy was convicted for attempting to illegally gather information from senior magistrate Azibert in February 2014 on a case that the former president was implicated in at the time.
March 2, 2021
IMAGE SOURCE: ANNE-CHRISTINE POUJOULAT / AFP VIA GETTY IMAGESFormer French President Nicolas Sarkozy