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The former French president has declared that his stay in prison has been “draining” and a “horrific experience” as he appeared via video link at a judicial proceeding regarding his application to complete his jail term at home.

Legal Proceeding from Behind Bars

Sarkozy, wearing a navy blue suit, was visible on screen from prison on Monday, seated at a table with his legal representatives beside him. He told the court: “I want to acknowledge all the prison staff, who are exceptionally humane, and who have eased this difficult situation – because it is a horrific experience.”

Context of the Case

The former president was admitted to La Santé prison in Paris on 21 October, after receiving a five-year jail sentence for illegal collaboration over a scheme to obtain funds for his election bid from the regime of the late Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi.

He has challenged the verdict, but the court ruled that because of the “serious nature” of his conviction, he had to go to prison while the appeals process took its course.

Unprecedented Importance

Sarkozy, who was France’s conservative leader between 2007 and 2012, is the initial ex-leader of an EU country to be imprisoned in prison, and the first French postwar leader to be incarcerated.

Emotional Testimony

Sarkozy told the court from prison: “I was completely unaware or desire to ask Mr Gaddafi for any kind of financing … I will never confess to something I didn’t do … I never imagined that at 70 years of age, I’d be in prison. It’s an ordeal that has been forced upon me. I confess it’s difficult, it’s very hard. It has an impact on any prisoner because it’s gruelling.”

He said he would not attempt to enter into contact with any accused individuals or testifiers in the case. He said: “I’m French, I am patriotic, my family is in France. This situation has caused them pain a lot.”

Legal Team Comments

Sarkozy’s lawyer Jean-Michel Darrois, sitting next to him in the remote connection facility, said: “Being in isolation has been very hard for him.” He commented on Sarkozy: “He’s a resilient, robust and courageous man and this imprisonment 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 inside. “He has faced death threats, has listened to shouts at night and the emergency response in a adjacent room when a prisoner injured themselves,” he stated.

Current Status

The public attorney Damien Brunet requested that Sarkozy’s petition for freedom be granted. The court will reveal its ruling on Monday afternoon.

Prison Conditions

The former president has been held in solitary confinement for his own security, in an private room of about 9 sq metres, with his own shower and toilet. Two bodyguards are stationed nearby to protect him.

Reports indicated that he had been consuming solely yogurt in prison as he feared any food might have been tampered with. He had been offered the facilities to cook for himself but declined the offer.

Encouragement from Outside

His online presence last week shared a video of piles of letters, postcards and packages it said had been sent to him, including a collage, a sweet treat and a book. “No letter will go without a response,” his account declared. “The final chapter has not yet been written.”

Personal Belongings

The former leader brought with him a biography of Jesus as well as The Count of Monte Cristo, Alexandre Dumas’s novel in which an innocent man is imprisoned but escapes to seek retribution.

Legal Proceedings Details

During Sarkozy’s three-month trial, the state attorney had informed the judges that Sarkozy engaged in a “Faustian pact of dishonesty with one of the most unspeakable dictators of the last three decades.

The accused denied wrongdoing and said he had not been part of a criminal conspiracy to seek election funding from Libya.

He was acquitted of three distinct accusations of corruption, misuse of Libyan public funds and illegal election campaign funding. After the state prosecutor also appealed against these not guilty verdicts, Sarkozy will be re-tried on all the accusations next year, including illegal collaboration.

Previous Convictions

Although the allegations of a clandestine financial agreement with the Libyan regime formed the biggest corruption trial Sarkozy had encountered, he had already been found guilty in two different proceedings and stripped of France’s top honor, the national recognition.

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 different matter 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 wore the tag for three months before being granted conditional release.