Former French President Nicolas Sarkozy has arrived at a French prison to begin a five-year sentence for conspiring to raise campaign funds from Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi.
His appearance at La Sante prison in Paris on Tuesday marked a stunning downfall for a man who led the country between 2007 and 2012.
The former conservative president walked hand and hand with his wife Carla Bruni as he left his home this morning.
He was greeted by a crowd of supporters who chanted "Nicolas, Nicolas" and sang La Marseillaise.
Sarkozy, who was convicted and sentenced last month, will become the first former French leader to be jailed since Nazi collaborator Marshal Philippe Petain after World War Two.
Shortly after he stepped into a car to head to La Sante, Sarkozy published a long message on X in which he claimed to be a victim of revenge and hatred.
"I want to tell (French people), with the unshakable strength that is mine, that it is not a former president of the Republic who is being imprisoned this morning — it is an innocent man," he said.
Sarkozy's conviction capped years of legal battles over allegations that his 2007 campaign took millions in cash from Libyan leader Gaddafi, who was later overthrown and killed during the Arab Spring uprisings.
While Sarkozy was found guilty of conspiring with close aides to orchestrate the scheme, he was acquitted of personally receiving or using the funds.
He has consistently denied wrongdoing and has called the case politically motivated.
"I am very proud of him, proud that he is going to prison with his head held high, and absolutely convinced of his innocence," his brother, Guillaume Sarkozy, told BFM TV. He was among relatives and supporters who cheered the former president on his way to jail.
