Nicolas Sarkozy to enter prison for criminal conspiracy over Libyan funding

<p>Former French president set to start five-year sentence for scheme to obtain campaign funds from Muammar Gaddafi’s regime</p><p></p><p>The former French president, <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/nicolas-sarkozy">Nicolas Sarkozy</a>, will go to prison on Tuesday after a court sentenced him to five years for <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/sep/25/nicolas-sarkozy-found-guilty-of-criminal-conspiracy-in-libya-trial">criminal conspiracy</a> over a scheme to obtain election campaign funds from the regime of the late Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi.</p><p>Sarkozy, who was the rightwing president of <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/france">France</a> between 2007 and 2012, will become the first former head of an EU country to serve time in prison, and the first French postwar leader to be jailed.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/oct/19/france-former-president-nicolas-sarkozy-prison">Continue reading...</a>