Sarkozy set to begin jail term over Libyan funding scandal

Nicolas Sarkozy is set to enter prison after his conviction over alleged Libyan funding, marking an extraordinary chapter in modern French politics, Report informs via RFI.

The once all-powerful leader is due to be jailed over a long-running case involving alleged Libyan financing for his 2007 presidential campaign, becoming the first former head of an EU country to actually serve time behind bars.

Sarkozy, who held office from 2007 to 2012, was convicted in late September of criminal conspiracy over a plan to receive campaign funds from the late Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi. The court ruled that the scheme, dating back to 2005, involved his associates striking an illegal deal in exchange for political favours.

Sarkozy is expected to be sent to La Santé prison in Paris, a historic and somewhat forbidding facility that has previously housed everyone from the notorious militant Carlos the Jackal to disgraced model agent Jean-Luc Brunel.