Former French President Nicolas Sarkozy has been released from prison after serving three weeks of a five-year sentence for criminal conspiracy linked to alleged Libyan funding of his 2007 presidential campaign.
A Paris court on Monday approved his release under judicial supervision while he appeals his conviction. The 70-year-old remains barred from leaving France and may be required to wear an electronic monitoring tag as part of his conditional freedom. “I had never imagined I would experience prison at 70,” Sarkozy said via videolink during the hearing. “This ordeal was imposed on me, and I lived through it. It’s hard — very hard. I would even say it’s gruelling.”
The ruling came after a 50-minute session in which Sarkozy appeared from La Santé prison in Paris, where he had been held since October 21.
Presiding judges said his application for release was “admissible,” allowing him to return home under supervision while awaiting his appeal. Under the order, Sarkozy is prohibited from contacting several individuals involved in ongoing investigations, including Justice Minister Gérald Darmanin.
He was joined in court by his wife, Carla Bruni, and his sons, Pierre and Jean, who were present as the court’s president announced the decision shortly after 1:30 p.m. local time (12:30 GMT).
Under French law, convicted defendants are typically released pending appeal unless they pose a flight risk or a danger to public order.
In September, Sarkozy was found guilty of criminal conspiracy for allegedly participating in efforts to secure millions in campaign funds from former Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi ahead of France’s 2007 presidential race.
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Prosecutors accused him of promising to help rehabilitate Gaddafi’s international image in return for the illicit financing. At the time, Libya remained under international sanctions for the 1988 Lockerbie bombing, which killed 270 people.
The court concluded that Sarkozy had conspired in the scheme but did not directly receive or use the money in his campaign. He was acquitted of separate charges of corruption and illegal campaign financing.
Sarkozy has consistently denied the accusations, calling the case a “political vendetta” and vowing to clear his name. “I will never confess to something I didn’t do,” he told the court. “I am fighting for the truth to prevail.”
Reports from French media outlets such as Le Monde and AFP said Sarkozy faced a difficult adjustment during his short stay at La Santé, where he was reportedly mocked by other inmates. He described the experience as “exhausting” and “humiliating.”
His upcoming appeal trial, expected next year, will revisit both the legal merits of the conviction and the evidence surrounding Libya’s alleged financial links to his 2007 campaign.
The former president, who led France from 2007 to 2012, remains under formal investigation in a separate case involving alleged witness tampering related to the same Libyan funding probe.
The accusations of Libyan funding first surfaced in 2011, shortly after France joined NATO’s military intervention against Gaddafi’s regime. Since then, several businessmen and intermediaries have faced prosecution in connection with the case.
Sarkozy has previously faced, and appealed other legal challenges, including a 2021 conviction for corruption and influence peddling in a separate matter.