Sarkozy will be the first (former) head of state with an electronic bracelet

The French Supreme Court has made the former President of the Republic’s three-year sentence for corruption definitive. He will serve them under house arrest. But his troubles with the law are not over

ROMA – Nicolas Sarkozy was finally convicted of corruption and influence peddling. The Court of Cassation confirmed the appeal sentence: three years of imprisonmentof which two were suspended, and three years of ineligibility. The penalty now becomes applicable and involves an unprecedented measure for a former head of state: the electronic bracelet.

The 69-year-old former president of the French Republic will be summoned by a judge within a month to define the terms of the sanction. His lawyer, however, announced a further appeal to the European Court of Human Rights. “He will respect the sentence, but contests the failure of the French judges to respect his fundamental rights,” the lawyer told AFP. However, this appeal does not block the execution of the sentence.

The “corruption pact” and the Bismuth case

The conviction, Le Parisien recalls, refers to an episode in 2014, when Sarkozy, together with his historic lawyer Thierry Herzog, offered Gilbert Azibert, a magistrate of the Court of Cassation, help in obtaining an honorary position in Monaco. In exchange, Azibert allegedly provided confidential information on a legal challenge related to the Bettencourt case.

All three defendants have always declared themselves innocent, but were sentenced with the same sentence. Herzog was also banned from practicing law for three years. Their appeals to the Supreme Court were also rejected, making the sentences final.

The defense denounced irregularities and violations of fundamental rights during the proceedings. Sarkozy’s lawyers have disputed the legitimacy of the wiretaps at the center of the case. In the meantime, further developments are expected in other legal cases involving the former president. In 2025, the Court of Cassation is due to hear Sarkozy’s appeal against a one-year prison sentence for the Bygmalion caselinked to excessive spending in the 2012 election campaign, while a trial will open in January on the suspected Libyan financing of his 2007 campaign.