Former French President Sarkozy Released from Prison After 20 Days

Former French President Nicolas Sarkozy was released from prison this Monday after spending 20 days behind bars following a conviction for illicit association. He will now await his appeal trial as a free man.

Sarkozy had become, on October 21, the first French head of state to be incarcerated since the end of the Second World War, and the first from a country within the European Union. However, on the same day, he requested supervised release, a provision allowed by law for individuals over 70. This Monday, the Paris Court of Appeal granted his request but imposed judicial controls and a prohibition on leaving the country.

The 70-year-old conservative politician left the Parisian La Santé prison in the early afternoon in a vehicle with tinted windows, escorted by police, a source close to the case confirmed.

"A Nightmare" in Prison

During the examination of his request hours earlier, the former leader, who appeared via video conference in a dark blue jacket, sweater, and shirt, described his time in prison as a "nightmare" and thanked the prison staff for making it "bearable."

"It is very hard, very hard. It certainly is for any detainee. I would even say it is exhausting," Sarkozy told the court, which was attended by his wife, singer Carla Bruni, and two of his children, an AFP journalist noted.

This leading figure of the French right had been held in isolation since October 21 in the Parisian prison, with two police officers stationed in a neighboring cell to ensure his protection. His lawyer, Christophe Ingrain, argued that his continued imprisonment constituted a "threat" to his client. The prosecution also favored his release, but with judicial control measures.

A Controversial Conviction

The president from 2007 to 2012 was convicted for allowing his associates to approach Muammar Gaddafi's Libya, which ended in 2011, to obtain funds to illegally finance his successful 2007 campaign.

Although the proceedings did not conclusively prove that the money was "ultimately" used, the court emphasized that it did originate from Libya, leading to his conviction for illicit association due to the "exceptional gravity of the facts."

His sentence was accompanied by controversy, as the court ordered his immediate imprisonment without waiting for the outcome of his appeal. "This morning, an innocent man is being locked up," he said before entering prison, denouncing a "judicial scandal" and an "ordeal."

He will now be able to await his appeal trial freely, which is expected to begin in the second half of March. However, he is prohibited from contacting one of his allies, Justice Minister Gérald Darmanin, according to the Court of Appeal's decision. A visit by Darmanin to Sarkozy in prison on October 29 had caused discontent among the judges. France's chief prosecutor, Rémy Heitz, accused him of "undermining the independence of the magistrates."

This conviction is not the first for this political veteran, who has two others for corruption, influence peddling, and illegal campaign financing in 2012, and faces further ongoing legal proceedings.