Former French President Nicolas Sarkozy has been sentenced to three years in prison for bribery and illegal influence. Of these, two years will be suspended, the French news agency AFP told the court on Monday from the Palace in Paris. The 66-year-old does not have to go to jail because he can be sentenced at home under electronic surveillance.
Judges sentenced Sarkozy’s longtime lawyer Thierry Herzog and lawyer Gilbert Acebert to three years in prison and two years in prison. Negotiations in court caused a stir in France late last year.
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According to the 2014 indictment, Sarkozy’s attorney sought to obtain investigative secrets about Herzog from Ajibert. In essence, this behavior endangered the independence of the judiciary, the prosecution argued.
Conservative Sarkozy ruled Elysee Palace from 2007 to 2012. He had denied the charges in court late last year. Many civil rights advocates still consider him a leader, although he no longer has offices.
The allegations are based on the use of intercepted phone calls between politician and lawyer Herzog. There was a heated argument about the legitimacy of this wiretapping. The process is considered a method. But this is not the first time a former president has been convicted. Sarkozy’s predecessor, Jacques Chirac, received a two-year suspended sentence for fraud and breach of trust during his tenure as mayor of Paris.
There will be another test in mid-March
Sarkozy’s time at Elysee was shaped by issues over wealthy friends, over-members of government or solidarity. The former hopeful of the right began his career as mayor. He finally lost to Socialist Franசois Hollande in 2012. After he resigned, he wanted to run for president again five years later – but failed in the party’s internal election process.
Sarkozy faces legal sanctions. Due to the costs of his failed re-election campaign, there will be another test in the middle of the month. Sarkozy has denied all allegations of money laundering by the judiciary over the years, paying for Libya’s successful presidential campaign in 2007.
“Sarco”, as he is often called, even sparked speculation about a political comeback. Last summer he released a memoir called “Le Temps des Tempets” (“Time of Storms”), which became a bestseller. In France, presidents are protected by a comprehensive immune system. (dpa)
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