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Ex-president Nicolas Sarkozy has stated that his stay in prison has been “exhausting” and a “horrific experience” as he was present via remote connection at a judicial proceeding regarding his petition to serve his sentence at home.

Court Appearance from Prison

Sarkozy, dressed in a dark blue attire, was visible on screen from jail on Monday, seated at a table with his lawyers beside him. He informed the judges: “I want to pay tribute to all the prison staff, who are remarkably compassionate, and who have made this nightmare bearable – because it is a nightmare.”

Context of the Legal Situation

Sarkozy entered the correctional facility in Paris on 21 October, after receiving a five-year jail sentence for criminal conspiracy over a plan to secure financing for his 2007 presidential election campaign from the regime of the late Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi.

He has challenged the ruling, but judges ruled that because of the “serious nature” of his guilty verdict, he had to go to prison while the legal challenge proceeded.

Historical Significance

The former leader, who was France’s conservative leader between 2007 and 2012, is the initial ex-leader of an EU country to be imprisoned in prison, and the first French postwar leader to go behind bars.

Personal Statement

Sarkozy stated to the judges from prison: “I never had any idea or intention to ask Mr Gaddafi for any kind of financing … I will not admit to something I am innocent of … I could not have foreseen that at 70 years of age, I’d be in prison. It’s an challenge that has been forced upon me. I admit it’s difficult, it’s extremely challenging. It has an impact on any prisoner because it’s exhausting.”

He said he would not attempt to enter into contact with any defendants or witnesses in the case. He said: “I’m French, I am patriotic, my family is in France. This ordeal has made them suffer a lot.”

Defense Lawyers Comments

Sarkozy’s lawyer Jean-Michel Darrois, positioned beside him in the remote connection facility, said: “Being in solitary confinement has been very hard for him.” He said of Sarkozy: “He’s a strong, robust and courageous man and this detention has been very painful for him.”

In court, another of Sarkozy’s lawyers, Christophe Ingrain, who had visited him every day, said Sarkozy would be safer out of prison than within. “He has faced death threats, has listened to shouts at night and the emergency response in a adjacent room when a prisoner injured themselves,” he stated.

Present Situation

The state prosecutor Damien Brunet requested that Sarkozy’s request for release be granted. The court will reveal its ruling on Monday afternoon.

Prison Conditions

Sarkozy has been held in solitary confinement for his own safety, in an individual cell of about 9 sq metres, with his own washing facility and toilet. Security personnel are stationed nearby to protect him.

Reports suggested that he had been consuming solely yogurt in prison as he was concerned any meal might have been contaminated. He had been given the opportunity to cook for himself but refused this.

Encouragement from Outside

Sarkozy’s social media account last week shared a recording of piles of letters, cards and parcels it said had been delivered to his attention, including a collage, a sweet treat and a book. “No letter will go unanswered,” his account announced. “The end of the story has not yet been written.”

Personal Belongings

Sarkozy brought with him a life story of Christ as well as the classic novel, Alexandre Dumas’s novel in which an wrongly accused individual is imprisoned but breaks out to seek retribution.

Court Case Particulars

During Sarkozy’s three-month trial, the public prosecutor had told the court that Sarkozy engaged in a “Faustian pact of corruption with one of the worst rulers of the last three decades.

Sarkozy denied wrongdoing and stated he had not been part of a illegal scheme to seek election funding from Libya.

He was found not guilty of three distinct accusations of dishonesty, improper handling of state money and unlawful political financing. After the public attorney also challenged these acquittals, Sarkozy will be re-tried on all the accusations next year, including illegal collaboration.

Previous Convictions

Although the allegations of a clandestine financial agreement with the North African government formed the biggest corruption trial Sarkozy had faced, he had already been convicted in two separate cases and stripped of France’s highest distinction, the national recognition.

The former president had previously become the first former French head of state forced to wear an electronic tag after being convicted in a separate case of corruption and influence peddling. In that situation, he was given a 12-month sentence but was able to complete it with an electronic tag attached to his leg. He wore the tag for a quarter year before being granted conditional release.