So he used money from Libya to get elected and then later he bombed them?
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Additionally budget for political campaigns are strictly regulated in France. And getting bribes from foreign dictator is, of course, not allowed.
The reason he did not get condemned also for that is that the judge could not proove the usage of the money.
The solitary confinement part is quite harsh, I've never understood how that is supposed to rehabilitate someone.
In France there's early release, parole, etc. so real time he spends behind bars might be as low as two years.
Edit: The WP article is actually a very interesting read, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Libyan_financing_in_the_2007_F...
In this case it's for his own wellbeing, because it's probably difficult for a former president to go along well with the rest of the prison population. I also read a statement that it would help prevent other inmates taking and publicly sharing pictures of him (since some inmates do manage to have phones even if they are forbidden).
Prison in general is one of the worst ways to rehabilitate someone though, I do agree with you.
The court couldn't prove beyond reasonable doubt that the money was used for his campaign.
However they were able to prove beyond reasonable doubt that he knew what his subordinates were planing and that he did nothing to stop it.
In France conspiring to commit a crime is punishable, regardless of whether the crime actually happened or not. That's a law that has been crafted by Sarkozy's own party.
> The solitary confinement part is quite harsh
The solitary part isn't a punishment, but to ensure his safety. They even went as far as to allocated another cell for the two full time police officers of his security detail...
Also the upside is that he has a cell for himself, something a lot of prisoners would love to have given the over prison occupancy in France is 137% (and up to 200% in some specific prisons).
I would be wary of going through the appeal court. The judges motivation make it quite clear they were _extremely_ lenient and chose to ignore how contradictory a lot of statement were, and the other cases linked to this. If he is convicted for "subordination de temoin" in the related case, it is likely that his sentence would be set to a longer time.
The fact that Sarkozy started the Lybian war was also outside of the scope of the trial, sadly.
It's about making sure crimes have consequences, however highly placed you and your friends are.
Couldn't he setup some crypto fund instead? Or investment in ballroom? Or simply just receive present, let say plane, instead of money? Would that help him in this case?
He probably thought he could get away with it. But make no mistake this is a political play and everyone involved is as dirty as the Paris Seine.
As the most serious cases at the national level are often tried in Paris, the high-security wing is filled with drug traffickers, murderers and terrorists, at least for the duration of the proceedings, which can take years in France.
Sarkozy is in the VIP wing with two bodyguards nearby. These are hardly the conditions one would imagine for isolation.
Maybe the Seine was heavily covered as dirty by the media but remember that you shouldn't swim in the San Francisco bay either. Wait for the next JO to hear about water quality problem with the LA beach area under rain.
An other French politician, Francois Fillon, tried that with bribes as gift including some luxury Suits. In addition of some public money redirection to his own family.
And it did not play well for him either.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fillon_affair
Ironically, he was Sarkozy's Prime Minster.
The party that they both come from (The republicans, previously UMP, previously RPR) has a long history of financial abuses and associated judgements.
The only "new" thing here is that it explicitly condemned a previous President.