Ex-President Nicolas Sarkozy
Former French president Nicolas Sarkozy has been sentenced to a year of house arrest after illegally financing his campaign for re-election in 2012.
A court in Paris said Sarkozy will be made to wear an electronic monitoring bracelet.
Sarkozy was not present in court for the verdict.
He is accused of having spent almost twice the maximum legal amount of €22.5million (£19.4million) on the re-election bid that he lost to Socialist Francois Hollande.
Thursday’s verdict comes after Sarkozy was found guilty of corruption and influence-peddling in another case on 1 March. He was sentenced to one year in prison and a two-year suspended sentence in that case but is free pending appeal.
In the campaign financing case, prosecutors concluded that Sarkozy knew weeks before the 2012 election that his expenses – which are strictly limited under French law – were getting close to the legal maximum.
They accused him of ignoring two notes from his accountants warning about the money issue.The court stated that Sarkozy “knew” the legal limit was at stake and “voluntarily” failed to supervise additional expenses.
Thursday’s verdict comes after Sarkozy was found guilty of corruption and influence-peddling in another case on 1 March. He was sentenced to one year in prison and a two-year suspended sentence in that case but is free pending appeal.
In the campaign financing case, prosecutors concluded that Sarkozy knew weeks before the 2012 election that his expenses – which are strictly limited under French law – were getting close to the legal maximum.
They accused him of ignoring two notes from his accountants warning about the money issue.
