The French Prosecutor wants to prosecute former President Sarkozy for financing the campaign by Libya | outside

Investigative judges have collected a series of clues after years of investigations that would show that Sarkozy’s victory in the 2007 elections was achieved with money from the regime of the late Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi, who allegedly gave him 50 million euros. This was more than double the then statutory funding limit of €21 million, and thus constituted a breach of French campaign finance law.

And the Palestinian National Front calls for the prosecution of the former head of state, who questions the facts, on charges of passive corruption, criminal association, illegal financing of electoral campaigns, and concealment of embezzlement of Libyan public funds. In addition to Sarkozy, the PNF is calling for criminal prosecution of twelve other people involved.

The investigation began when French-Lebanese businessman Ziad Takieddine told the Mediapart news site in 2016 that he had delivered bags from Libya containing 5 million euros in cash to Sarkozy and his former chief of staff. Taqi al-Din later retracted this claim.

Sarkozy himself has always maintained that he is the victim of a conspiracy.

The Libyan issue is not the only one that haunts the former president. For example, the Paris Court of Appeal will rule next week in the “affaires des écoutes” case, in which he was found guilty of corruption and influence in the first instance.

In November, the Bygmalion case will be heard on appeal. Prior to that, he was primarily sentenced to one year in prison for illegal campaign financing for his failed re-election bid in 2012.