PARIS: Former French President Nicolas Sarkozy was back in court Monday for a retrial on charges he sought Libyan financing for his 2007 election, in a case that last year saw him become France’s first modern-day head of state to go to prison.
A lower court in September found the right-wing politician — who was president from 2007 to 2012 — guilty of seeking to acquire funding from Muammar Qaddafi’s Libya for the campaign that saw him elected.
Sarkozy — who has denied any wrongdoing — in October entered a Paris prison, serving 20 days before he was released pending the appeal.
Sarkozy has faced a series of legal issues since leaving office and has already received two definitive convictions in other cases.
The 71-year-old entered the Paris Appeal Court ahead of Monday’s hearing, shaking hands with police and lawyers before taking his seat in the front row of the dock.
