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Ex-president Nicolas Sarkozy has stated that his time behind bars has been “exhausting” and a “horrific experience” as he appeared via remote connection at a court hearing regarding his application to serve his sentence at home.

Court Appearance from Behind Bars

Sarkozy, dressed in a dark blue attire, appeared on camera from jail on Monday, seated at a table with his lawyers beside him. He told the court: “I want to acknowledge all the prison staff, who are remarkably compassionate, and who have eased this difficult situation – because it is a horrific experience.”

Background of the Case

Sarkozy was admitted to La Santé prison in Paris on 21 October, after receiving a half-decade imprisonment for illegal collaboration over a plan to obtain funds for his election bid from the regime of the late Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi.

He has challenged the verdict, but the court ruled that because of the “serious nature” of his guilty verdict, he had to be incarcerated while the appeals process took its course.

Unprecedented Importance

The former leader, who was France’s rightwing president between 2007 and 2012, is the initial ex-leader of an EU country to serve time in prison, and the initial leader since WWII to be incarcerated.

Emotional Testimony

The former president stated to the judges from prison: “I was completely unaware or intention to ask Mr Gaddafi for any kind of financing … I will never confess to something I didn’t do … I could not have foreseen that at this stage of life, I’d be in prison. It’s an ordeal that has been forced upon me. I admit it’s hard, it’s extremely challenging. It leaves a mark on any prisoner because it’s exhausting.”

He said he would not try to communicate with any accused individuals or testifiers in the case. He said: “I’m French, I love my country, my family is in France. This situation has made them suffer a lot.”

Defense Lawyers Observations

Sarkozy’s lawyer Jean-Michel Darrois, sitting next to him in the remote connection facility, stated: “Being in solitary confinement has been very hard for him.” He commented on Sarkozy: “He’s a resilient, robust and brave man and this detention has been very painful for him.”

In court, a different legal representative, Christophe Ingrain, who had visited him every day, said Sarkozy would be more secure outside jail than within. “He has received threats against his life, has listened to shouts at night and the emergency response in a neighbouring cell when a prisoner self-harmed,” he stated.

Current Status

The state prosecutor Damien Brunet asked that Sarkozy’s request for release be granted. The court will announce its decision on Monday afternoon.

Prison Conditions

Sarkozy has been held in solitary confinement for his own security, in an individual cell of about 9 sq metres, with his own washing facility and toilet. Two bodyguards are occupying a neighbouring cell to protect him.

Accounts suggested that he had been consuming solely yogurt in prison as he feared any meal might have been contaminated. He had been offered the facilities to cook for himself but declined the offer.

Support from the Public

His online presence last week shared a video of piles of letters, cards and parcels it claimed had been delivered to his attention, including a collage, a sweet treat and a volume. “No letter will go without a response,” his account declared. “The end of the story has not yet been determined.”

Items in Prison

The former leader took into prison a biography of Jesus as well as The Count of Monte Cristo, the famous work in which an wrongly accused individual is imprisoned but breaks out to seek retribution.

Court Case Particulars

During Sarkozy’s three-month trial, the public prosecutor had told the court that Sarkozy entered into a “corrupt agreement” of dishonesty with one of the worst rulers of the last three decades.

Sarkozy denied wrongdoing and said he had not been part of a illegal scheme to obtain campaign finances from Libya.

He was found not guilty of three separate charges of corruption, misuse of Libyan public funds and unlawful political financing. After the public attorney also challenged these acquittals, Sarkozy will be judged again on all the accusations next year, including criminal conspiracy.

Prior Legal Issues

Although the allegations of a clandestine financial agreement with the North African government formed the most significant legal case Sarkozy had encountered, he had already been convicted in two different proceedings and stripped of France’s top honor, the national recognition.

The former president had previously become the initial ex-leader forced to wear an electronic tag after being found guilty in a separate case of dishonesty and improper sway. In that case, he was given a 12-month sentence but was able to complete it with an ankle monitor worn around the ankle. He wore the tag for a quarter year before being granted conditional release.