Former French president to serve prison sentence in solitary confinement

Former French President Nicolas Sarkozy, sentenced to five years in prison, will serve his term in solitary confinement, BFMTV reports, citing sources.

Starting October 21, Sarkozy will be held in the Santé Prison, located in southern Paris, which is currently the only remaining prison within the French capital.

Although the facility has a section for vulnerable inmates—where Sarkozy might have been placed due to his age (70) and prominence—BFMTV reports that he will not be accommodated there.

Nicolas Sarkozy, France's president from 2007 to 2012, has been entangled in multiple corruption scandals since leaving office, marking a dramatic fall for the conservative leader once known for his high-energy style and pro-EU reforms. His latest conviction, handed down by a Paris court on September 25, 2025, stems from the "Libyan financing" case, where he was found guilty of criminal conspiracy for allegedly accepting up to €50 million in illicit funds from Muammar Gaddafi's regime to bankroll his 2007 presidential campaign victory.

This marks Sarkozy's third fraud-related conviction: In 2021, he received a three-year sentence (suspended) for wiretapping and influence-peddling in the "Paul Bismuth" affair, and in 2023, another for illegal campaign financing in his 2012 reelection bid. Appeals are underway for all, but French law requires immediate incarceration for sentences over two years pending review—making Sarkozy the first postwar French president to serve time, a milestone that has fueled right-wing critiques of judicial overreach, including from Marine Le Pen.

By Khagan Isayev