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Ex-president Nicolas Sarkozy has declared that his period of incarceration has been “draining” and a “horrific experience” as he was present via remote connection at a judicial proceeding regarding his application to complete his jail term at home.

Legal Proceeding from Behind Bars

The former leader, wearing a navy blue suit, appeared on camera from prison on Monday, seated at a table with his lawyers beside him. He informed the judges: “I want to commend all the correctional officers, who are remarkably compassionate, and who have made this nightmare bearable – because it is a horrific experience.”

Background of the Case

Sarkozy was admitted to the correctional facility in Paris on 21 October, after receiving a five-year jail sentence for illegal collaboration over a plan to obtain funds for his 2007 presidential election campaign from the regime of the late Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi.

He has appealed against the verdict, but judges ruled that because of the “serious nature” of his guilty verdict, he had to go to prison while the appeals process took its course.

Unprecedented Importance

Sarkozy, who served as France’s rightwing president between 2007 and 2012, is the first former head of an EU country to be imprisoned in prison, and the initial leader since WWII to go behind bars.

Emotional Testimony

Sarkozy stated to the judges from prison: “I was completely unaware or desire to ask Mr Gaddafi for any kind of financing … I will never confess to something I am innocent of … I never imagined that at this stage of life, I’d be in prison. It’s an challenge that has been forced upon me. I confess it’s hard, it’s extremely challenging. It has an impact on any prisoner because it’s gruelling.”

He stated he would not try to communicate with any defendants or witnesses in the case. He declared: “I’m French, I am patriotic, my family is in France. This situation has made them suffer a lot.”

Legal Team Observations

Sarkozy’s lawyer Jean-Michel Darrois, positioned beside him in the prison video link room, stated: “Being in isolation has been extremely difficult for him.” He commented on Sarkozy: “He’s a strong, durable and courageous man and this detention has caused him great suffering.”

In court, a different legal representative, Christophe Ingrain, who had seen him daily, said Sarkozy would be safer out of prison than within. “He has received threats against his life, has listened to shouts at night and the emergency response in a neighbouring cell when a prisoner injured themselves,” he said.

Present Situation

The public attorney Damien Brunet requested that Sarkozy’s request for release be approved. The court will announce its decision on Monday afternoon.

Prison Conditions

Sarkozy has been held in solitary confinement for his own security, in an individual cell of about 9 sq metres, with his own shower and toilet. Security personnel are stationed nearby to ensure his safety.

Reports suggested that he had been eating only yoghurt in prison as he was concerned any food might have been contaminated. He had been offered the facilities to cook for himself but refused this.

Support from Outside

His online presence last week posted a recording of numerous correspondences, cards and parcels it claimed had been sent to him, including a collage, a sweet treat and a book. “No correspondence will go without a response,” his account declared. “The end of the story has not yet been determined.”

Items in Prison

Sarkozy took into prison a biography of Jesus as well as the classic novel, Alexandre Dumas’s novel in which an innocent man is sentenced to jail but escapes to seek retribution.

Court Case Details

During the lengthy court case, the public prosecutor had informed the judges that Sarkozy engaged in a “Faustian pact of dishonesty with one of the worst rulers of the last 30 years.

The accused maintained his innocence and stated he had not been involved in a criminal conspiracy to seek election funding from Libya.

He was found not guilty of three separate charges of corruption, improper handling of state money and unlawful political financing. After the state prosecutor also appealed against these not guilty verdicts, Sarkozy will be judged again on all the accusations next year, including illegal collaboration.

Prior Legal Issues

Although the allegations of a secret campaign funding pact with the Libyan regime formed the biggest corruption trial Sarkozy had encountered, he had already been found guilty in two separate cases and lost France’s highest distinction, the Légion d’honneur.

The former president had previously become the first former French head of state forced to wear an monitoring device after being found guilty in a separate case of dishonesty and improper sway. In that case, he was given a one-year jail term but was able to complete it with an electronic tag worn around the ankle. He had the device for a quarter year before being granted conditional release.