Sarkozy jailed for five years over Gaddafi campaign funds
Former French President Nicolas Sarkozy has been sentenced to five years in prison, after being convicted of accepting illicit campaign funding for his 2007 election campaign from the late Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi.
The court acquitted him on the other charges, including corruption and misuse of public funds. He was also fined €100,000 and barred from holding public office for five years.
Within a month, Mr Sarkozy will be summoned by the prosecutor's office and informed of the date he must begin his sentence. An appeal will not suspend the sentence.
According to the investigation, Mr Sarkozy is alleged to have received up to €50m to fund his campaign. The money was reportedly transferred from Libya through a network of intermediaries.
One of the key prosecution witnesses was businessman Ziad Takieddine, who claimed he personally transported suitcases full of cash. Takieddine changed his testimony several times, and two days before the verdict was delivered, his death in Beirut was reported.
Mr Sarkozy, 70, described the verdict as an "extremely serious" blow to the rule of law.
He was previously convicted of corruption and campaign finance violations related to his 2012 campaign, receiving a one-year suspended sentence.
Mr Sarkozy served as President of France between 2007 and 2012.
Translation by Iurie Tataru
