Prosecutors demand 7 years in prison for ex-French President Sarkozy in corruption case

Prosecutors are seeking a seven-year prison sentence for former French President Nicolas Sarkozy, who is accused of taking money from late Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi to finance his presidential campaign.

This is reported by Politico.

Prosecutors accuse Sarkozy and some of his former associates of making an "incredible, unprecedented, obscene" deal with Gaddafi, which involved Gaddafi pouring millions of euros into Sarkozyʼs 2007 presidential campaign.

In exchange for the money, Sarkozy allegedly agreed to use his presidential powers to strengthen Parisʼ diplomatic and business ties with Tripoli, as well as to review the case of Gaddafiʼs relative, Abdullah Senussi. In 1999, a French court found Senussi guilty in absentia of involvement in the bombing of a plane flying from Brazzaville in what was then the Peopleʼs Republic of Congo to Paris (all 170 passengers on board died during the flight) and sentenced him to life in prison.

French financial investigators have spent a decade investigating claims that Sarkozyʼs campaign was funded from Libya. The former president has repeatedly maintained his innocence and claimed he was the victim of a conspiracy.

• In February 2025, Nicolas Sarkozy was placed under house arrest and fitted with an electronic bracelet. This is the first time this has been done in France to a former president.
• On March 1, 2021, a Paris court found former French President Nicolas Sarkozy (2007–2012) guilty of corruption and influence peddling. He received a three-year prison sentence, one year of which was a real sentence and two years of which was suspended.
• And on September 30, 2021, Sarkozy was found guilty of fraud related to the financing of the 2012 election campaign. According to the investigation, Sarkozyʼs team spent €43 million on the election campaign — almost twice the allowed amount.

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