Nicolas Sarkozy charged with ‘conspiracy’ over claims he received £45m in cash from Libya’s Gaddafi

Nicolas Sarkozy now faces four charges in the cash from Libya case

Credit: PATRICK KOVARIK/AFP

Former French president Nicolas Sarkozy was on Friday charged with "criminal conspiracy" over claims that the late Libyan strongman Muammar Gaddafi illicitly bankrolled his 2007 election campaign to the tune of €50 million (£45m) in cash.

The charge, which can be appealed under French law, came after Paris prosecutors interviewed the conservative ex-president for more than 40 hours over four days.

It means he is facing trial on four counts. In 2018 he was already charged with taking bribes, concealing the embezzlement of Libyan public funds and illegal campaign financing.

These carry a maximum sentence of ten years in prison and a €150,000 fine.

Mr Sarkozy, 65, who was president from 2007 to 2012, vehemently denies any wrongdoing. On Facebook he slammed the latest setback, saying that his "innocence has been tarnished" by the charges, without "even the slightest proof.”

During questioning, he insisted, "I answered every question I was asked without ever being put in difficulty”.

Last month, the Paris appeals court quashed Mr Sarkozy’s bid to have the investigation dismissed, clearing the way for a trial. However, investigating magistrates will make the final decision.

The investigation began after the news website Mediapart published a document in 2012, allegedly signed by Libya’s intelligence chief, purporting to show that Mr Gaddafi had agreed to hand over the cash to Mr Sarkozy.

In his defence, the diminutive ex-president has said there is no legal basis in France for prosecuting someone for misusing funds from a foreign country.

After his 2007 election, Mr Sarkozy received Mr Gaddafi with pomp in Paris, but later spearheaded international military action against his regime in 2011 along with David Cameron and Barack Obama, which led to the dictator being toppled and killed.

This is not the most pressing judicial threat to the Right-winger, who has enjoyed resurgent popularity since retiring, with his memoirs becoming a summer bestseller.

He has also been charged in two other cases, one relating to claims of fake invoices devised to hide overspending on his failed 2012 re-election campaign, and another for alleged influence peddling involving a top judge.

He is set to go on trial in the second case on November 23.