Fall from grace: France's Sarkozy loses appeal, to wear electronic tag

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Agencies
17 May 11:25
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The Paris Court of Appeals upholds French President Nicolas Sarkozy's three-year prison term, but two of those years are suspended.

Former French President Nicolas Sarkozy arrives at a Paris courthouse with his lawyer Jacqueline Laffont on May 17, 2023. (AFP)

The Paris Court of Appeals dismissed France's former president Nicolas Sarkozy's appeal on Wednesday against his conviction for corruption and influence peddling back in 2021. The Court upheld Sarkozy's three-year prison term, but two of those years were suspended, with the remaining year to be served by Sarkozy by wearing an electronic bracelet instead of actually going to jail.

Concurrently, the court ratified a temporary ban on Sarkozy from serving in public office.

Following the court's decision, Nicolas Sarkozy's lawyer said the former French President is innocent of the corruption and influence charges, insisting on challenging the failed appeal and taking it to the Supreme Court.

"Nicolas Sarkozy is innocent," lawyer Jacqueline Laffont told reporters. "We will take this all the way. We are just at the beginning of the process."

In 2021, Sarkozy, 68, was found guilty of trying to bribe a judge to reach confidential information on a judicial inquiry. At the time, he was sentenced to three years in prison in that case, two of which were suspended.It marked a stunning fall from favor for a Former President and is one of the numerous legal battles Sarkozy has been battling over the past decade.

France's President from 2007 to 2012 has vehemently denied any wrongdoing during the trials.