Prosecutors said Sarkozy’s UMP party spent nearly double the €22.5m (£19.4m) cap on his campaign, splurging on lavish campaign rallies and events…reports Asian Lite News
Nicolas Sarkozy, the former President of France, has been found guilty of illegally funding his 2012 re-election campaign.
He was handed a one-year sentence of which six months were suspended, meaning they might be served by wearing an electronic tag instead of going to jail. Sarkozy was accused of overspending on his campaign, then hiring a PR firm to cover it up.
He has always denied all allegations. The case has since become known as the Bygmalion affair, after the name of the firm.
Wednesday’s decision came after a Paris court of appeal confirmed a lower court’s previous guilty verdict. The lower court had originally handed him a one-year prison sentence.
His lawyer said he will appeal against the new sentence at France’s highest court. This means it will be put on hold, and Sarkozy will not be going straight to prison.
If the sentence is confirmed, he is most likely to be forced to wear an electronic bracelet, carry out community service, or pay a fine.
Prosecutors said Sarkozy’s UMP party spent nearly double the €22.5m (£19.4m) cap on his campaign, splurging on lavish campaign rallies and events.
To hide the costs, it then asked Bygmalion to invoice the party, rather than the campaign.
While prosecutors admit they cannot prove Sarkozy organised or was involved in the scheme, they say he must have been aware of it.
Several other people implicated in the Bygmalion case, like Sarkozy’s deputy campaign manager Jérôme Lavrilleux, were also handed suspended sentences.
Nicolas Sarkozy served one five-year term as president, until 2012. He adopted tough anti-immigration policies and sought to reform France’s economy during a presidency overshadowed by the global financial crisis.
Since losing his re-election bid to socialist François Hollande in 2012, he has been targeted by several criminal investigations.
In 2023, he was given a suspended prison sentence for trying to bribe a judge in 2014. He was sentenced to three years in prison – including two suspended – but appealed against the ruling.
The 68-year-old was the first former French president to get a custodial sentence.
Next year, Sarkozy will be tried over allegations he took illegal funds for his 2007 presidential campaign from the late Libyan dictator, Muammar Gaddafi.
