Sarkozy is in court facing charges of illegal financing.

Former French President Sarkozy has begun to be tried on the allegation of receiving illegal financing from Libya.

CORRUPTION DEAL WITH GADDAFI

The trial in which Sarkozy is accused of receiving illegal financing from Libya during his 2007 presidential election campaign has started at the Paris Criminal Court. Sarkozy is being tried on the charge of having made a corruption deal with Libya's ousted leader Muammar Gaddafi to support his election as president in 2007.

10 YEARS IN PRISON AND POLITICAL BAN

Prosecutors accuse Sarkozy of bribery, embezzlement of public funds, providing illegal campaign financing, and forming a criminal organization. If Sarkozy is found guilty of these charges, he faces a potential sentence of 10 years in prison and a fine of 375,000 euros, along with a possibility of being deprived of political rights for 5 years.

Denying the charges in court, Sarkozy stated, "Such a large financing is being discussed, so why is there no evidence of it?" Judges indicated that there is significant evidence related to the case.

12 PEOPLE INCLUDING 3 FORMER MINISTERS

A total of 12 people, including 3 former ministers, will be tried alongside Sarkozy. Among those being tried are Claude Gueant, Brice Hortefeux, Eric Woerth, and Cedric Gaubert, who are close associates of Sarkozy. These individuals are accused of organizing and transferring illegal funds from Libya. On the Libyan side, the regime's former financial officer Bachir Saleh is being tried, but Saleh is still at large. Additionally, it is expected that the charges against one of the defendants, Sivajothi Rajendram, who has been reported deceased, will be dropped.

During the hearing, the lawyer of Saudi businessman Khaled Ali Bugshan raised a constitutional objection. However, the court decided not to send the objection to the French Court of Cassation. Following this decision, the other requests of the defense were started to be evaluated.

HE HAD BEEN PLACED UNDER HOUSE ARREST

The French High Court upheld a 3-year prison sentence, of which 2 years were suspended, against Sarkozy in December of last year for the allegations of corruption and bribery of a judge in a case he was tried in 2021. It was decided that Sarkozy would be placed under house arrest and fitted with an electronic bracelet.