“Sarkozy has to give back the money he accepted from Libya to finance his electoral campaign. We financed his campaign and we have the proof… The first thing we’re demanding is that this clown gives back the money to the Libyan people.”
Saif al-Islam Gaddafi (March 2011)
September 30 2016 — French news website ‘Mediapart’ has uncovered hard evidence documenting the funding of Sarkozy’s presidential campaign (2007) by Colonel Gaddafi.
UPDATE (March 1 2021) — Today, a Paris court found French former President Nicolas Sarkozy guilty of corruption and influence peddling and sentenced him to one year in prison and a two-year suspended sentence.
UPDATE (September 30 2021) — Today, Former French President Nicolas Sarkozy was sentenced to one year in prison for illegal campaign financing in his failed 2012 re-election bid.
UPDATE (May 11 2023) — France’s financial crimes prosecutors (PNF) said Sarkozy and 12 others should face trial over accusations they sought millions of euros in financing from the regime of then Libyan leader Gaddafi for his ultimately victorious campaign.
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“This trial is just the first of a series. But, if Sarkozy is indeed guilty, then one can only assume that he has indeed accepted money from Libya. Why would this smart guy obstruct justice if he had nothing to hide? Now the question is rather obvious. What is it the Libyans wanted in return?”
Intel Today (December 20 2020)
UPDATE (May 17 2023) — [French court upholds three-year sentence for ex-president Sarkozy in wiretapping case]
France’s former president Nicolas Sarkozy lost his appeal Wednesday against a 2021 conviction for corruption and influence peddling at the Paris Court of Appeals. The court upheld his three-year prison sentence, but two of those years were suspended and the court has said Sarkozy can wear an electronic bracelet instead of going to jail for the remaining year.
And now…
Last Thursday, French prosecutors demanded he face a new trial over alleged Libyan financing of his 2007 election campaign.
France’s financial crimes prosecutors said Sarkozy and 12 others should face trial over accusations they sought millions of euros in financing from the regime of then Libyan leader Moamer Kadhafi for his ultimately victorious campaign. Sarkozy is accused of corruption, illegal campaign financing and concealing the embezzlement of public funds. [France 24]
Investigating magistrates are to have the last word on whether or not that trial goes ahead.
END of UPDATE
“One should — of course — be very suspicious of such stories. However, in this particular case, I have a strong feeling that there is some truth to it… Let us take it slowly.”
Intel Today
September 30 2016
UPDATE (May 11 2023) — France’s financial crimes prosecutors (PNF) said Sarkozy and 12 others should face trial over accusations they sought millions of euros in financing from the regime of then Libyan leader Gaddafi for his 2007 campaign.
After a decade of investigation, the French national financial prosecutor’s office has just announced its decision to seek a trial. It’s now up to judges to determine whether to move ahead. In general, judges in France follow such prosecutors’ requests, though not always. [AP]
END of UPDATE
UPDATE (September 30 2021) — On March 21 2021, Nicolas Sarkozy became France’s first post-war president to be handed a custodial sentence when he was given a three-year term, two years of which were suspended, for corruption and influence peddling over attempts to secure favours from a judge.
Three months later he was back in the dock for illegal financing during the 2012 re-election campaign. His campaign spending came to at least 42.8 million euros, nearly double the 22.5 million euro legal limit.
Sarkozy opted for a rather simple, yet disturbing, line of defense. According to the former president, important people such himself have no time to pay attention to “accounting detail”. The judge was not impressed…
Today, Nicolas Sarkozy was sentenced to one year in prison for illegal campaign financing, making him the first French head of state in modern times to receive two jail terms.
Sarkozy’s legal woes are not over yet as French prosecutors are looking into alleged illegal campaign funding from Libya.
Libya’s former leader, the late Moammar Gadhafi, allegedly provided Sarkozy’s 2007 campaign with millions of euros shipped to Paris in suitcases.
Allow me to speculate… I believe that it is very likely that Sarkozy has indeed accepted money from Libya.
After all, this smart guy would not have obstructed justice if he had nothing to hide. Now the next question is rather obvious. What is it the Libyans wanted in return?
END of UPDATE
UPDATE (June 22 2021) — Prosecutor seeks prison time — again — for French ex-president Sarkozy
The second Sarkozy trial, after much ‘Covid’ delay, has finally begun.
French prosecutors request a six-month prison term for former president Nicolas Sarkozy at his campaign financing trial.
As expected, the ex-President denied wrongdoing and claims that the expenses of his campaign were not his responsibility.
Prosecutors will easily demonstrate that Sarkozy’s party spent nearly double the 22.5 million euros ($27 million) allowed under electoral law. Moreover, Sarkozy hired a friendly public relations agency to hide the cost.
This trial should be a no-brainer. Sarkozy is of course guilty. However, the next trial could be geopolitical dynamite.
Indeed, the longest-running and most serious case against Sarkozy involves accusations that his 2007 campaign received illegal financing from Qaddafi.
Let me summarize it for you.
Sarkozy used twice the legal amount of money he was allowed. And we already know that he corrupted a judge to turn a blind eye about the origin of the money.
Where does this leave you?
Now the question is rather obvious. What is it the Libyans wanted in return?
END of UPDATE
“In February 2020, Sarkozy quoted Nelson Mandela during a conference: ‘I never lose. I either win or learn.’ I expect Sarkozy to learn a big lesson next month.”
Intel Today — February 11 2021
UPDATE (March 1 2021) — Today, a Paris court found French former President Nicolas Sarkozy guilty of corruption and influence peddling and sentenced him to one year in prison and a two-year suspended sentence.
The 66-year-old politician, who was president from 2007 to 2012, was convicted for having tried to illegally obtain information from a senior magistrate in 2014 about a legal action in which he was involved.
The court said Sarkozy will be entitled to request to be detained at home with an electronic bracelet.
This ruling is only the very beginning of a long road to hell for the former president.
Sarkozy is scheduled to stand trial later this month in a separate case involving his 2012 campaign, in which he has been charged with exceeding strict limits on campaign spending.
The longest-running and most serious case against him involves accusations that his 2007 campaign received illegal Libyan financing from the Qaddafi.
Finally, Sarkozy is also being investigated on allegations of influence peddling and “laundering of crime or misdemeanor” related to consulting activities in Russia.
END of UPDATE
Lockerbie — Three Decades of Lies: J’Accuse…!
QUICK NOTES — To make it easier for the readers to retrieve various chapters of my book, I have created a special page “Lockerbie” where all the links to the chapters will be listed with a brief description. You can access that page directly as it appears at the far right of the top bar of this blog.
On March 11 2020, the Scottish Criminal Cases Review Commission [SCCRC] decided to refer the Lockerbie case back to the High Court of Justiciary for determination. As a result of the Commission’s decision, Mr. Megrahi’s family was therefore entitled to instruct an appeal against his conviction.
The first procedural hearing took place on Friday August 21 2020. The Appeal started on November 24 2020 and ended 3 days later. The five judges will now produce a written submission as soon as practicable.
Lockerbie — Three Decades of Lies: J’Accuse…!
“According to documents gathered by an elected official in Tripoli, in 2005 Nicolas Sarkozy’s close friend and personal lawyer Thierry Herzog offered to get an arrest warrant and conviction against a senior Libyan official – who was blamed for a terrorist attack – quashed. The man in question, Colonel Muammar Gaddafi’s brother-in-law and security chief Abdullah Senussi, had been given a life prison sentence in his absence for masterminding the 1989 bombing of a French UTA airline DC10 passenger plane over Niger, in which 170 people lost their lives.”
MEDIAPART (June 21 2018)
UPDATE (December 20 2020) — Last week, French Prosecutors in the graft trial of French ex-president Nicolas Sarkozy called for him to be sentenced to a prison term of four years of which he should serve two.
Prosecutors asked for the same punishment for Sarkozy’s lawyer and co-defendant, Thierry Herzog, as well as for the judge, Gilbert Azibert.
Allow me to speculate…
This trial is just the first of a series. But, if Sarkozy is indeed guilty, then one can only assume that he has indeed accepted money from Libya.
Why would this smart guy obstruct justice if he had nothing to hide? Now the question is rather obvious. What is it the Libyans wanted in return?
RELATED POST: On This Day — Remembering UTA Flight 772 (September 19 1989)
RELATED POST: Obituary — French Investigative Journalist Pierre Péan Dies at 81
RELATED POST: One Year Ago — Clinton’s Emails: Moussa Koussa and The “Lockerbie Bomber”
In February 2019, two french judges travelled from Paris to Tripoli to interview former Libyan intelligence chief Abdullah Senussi — who was also the brother-in-law of Gaddafi — as part of their ongoing investigation into financial ties between Libya and Sarkozy particularly in the run up to the 2007 French elections.
French Mediapart news website said it had gained access to extracts from the statements provided by Senussi, who reportedly detailed to French officials how he oversaw the multi-million dollar payment for Sarkozy’s campaign, as ordered by Colonel Gaddafi.
“Senussi also confirmed that as part of the deal, the former French president’s personal lawyer and friend Thierry Herzog attempted to overturn an international arrest warrant issued against Senussi, after his conviction in absentia by a Paris court for his part in the blowing up of a French airliner [UTA 772] in 1989. (…)
Yet Senussi’s latest statement is also believed to detail the time frame in which the money was transferred to the French interior minister over two instalments in 2006.
According to Mediapart, Senussi’s testimony is in line with some of the evidence already collected by the investigators, while other details still need fact-checking.”
And now, we learned that the US DoJ intends to charge Abu Agila Massud and Abdullah Senussi in connection to the Lockerbie bombing.
RELATED POST: LOCKERBIE — US DOJ to unseal charges against 3rd Libyan [UPDATE — Blast from the Past]
Masud and Senussi have already been indicted by the International Criminal Court for crimes against humanity.
Masud was given 10 years for bomb-making. Senussi was sentenced to death by a Libyan court in 2015 over his role in the uprising but is still in custody. Both men are currently held in a Tripoli jail.
Trust me. We are heading for the perfect Xmas Kiss. Stay tuned!
“US prosecutors are focused on two individuals. They have indicated that they have new evidence that links these two men to the bombing.”
Mohammed Ali Abdallah — Senior adviser to the Libyan government on US affairs
(Dec 20 2020)
END of UPDATE
A diary of Shukri Ghanem — Head of the Libyan government (2003-2006) and minister of oil (2006-2011) — contains records relating to a series of payments to the 2007 campaign of then-President Nicolas Sarkozy.
About Shukri Ghanem
Shukri Ghanem was head of the Libyan government (2003-2006) and minister of oil (2006-2011).
Ghanem defected in 2011. Ghanem was found dead on April 29 2012 in Vienna as a result of ‘accidental drowning’.
The previous day, MEDIAPART had published a piece regarding this affair.
How Much?
According to Mediapart, the payments were made in three tranches. It cited a meeting dated 29 April 2007 at which Bashir Saleh, a former aide of Gaddafi, is said to have transferred 1.5 million euros to Nicolas Sarkozy.
A further 3 million euros was purportedly transferred by a son of Gaddafi before the final 2 million was sent by Abdullah Sanussi, the then head of Libyan intelligence service. [AFRICANEWS]
RUMINT / GOSINT?
One should — of course — be very suspicious of such stories. However, in this particular case, I have a strong feeling that there is some truth to it… Let us take it slowly.
Stay tuned. We will come back to this one!
Ex-Libyan oil minister’s body found in Danube
PS: LOCKERBIE
In February 2004, Ghanem was interviewed on the BBC Radio 4 Today program.
He stirred controversy in the interview by repudiating Libya’s responsibility both for the 1988 Lockerbie bombing and the 1984 murder of British WPC Yvonne Fletcher (who was shot and killed in April 1984 outside the Libyan Embassy in London).
This incident led to the severing of UK/Libya diplomatic relations.
It is my opinion that Ghanem was telling the truth about these events.
And I understand that many experts/witnesses would indeed argue that the Lockerbie trial was a joke. A very sick joke.
UPDATE (September 30 2018) — Over the last 12 months, new details have emerged regarding the biggest political corruption scandal to hit France in decades.
One fact appears quite established. Mr Sarkozy sought to influence a judge — Gilbert Azibert — who was looking into suspected illegal financing of his campaign.
Another allegation is less certain but quite plausible. Sarkozy is suspected to have accepted €50m from Gaddafi’s regime.
UPDATE (September 30 2019) — On June 18 2019, the Court of Cassation, which rules on questions of law, stated that a trial was justified for Sarkozy as well as his lawyer Thierry Herzog and former judge Gilbert Azibert.
The ruling was Sarkozy’s last hope of preventing the trial coming to court and the French judicial authorities have now approved sending the case to a criminal tribunal.
It is the first time in the history of modern France that a former leader will face explicit corruption charges in court.
After his 2012 defeat, Sarkozy famously declared: “you won’t hear about me anymore.” Justice appears to have decided otherwise…
UPDATE (September 30 2020) — The wheels of justice turn slowly, but grind exceedingly fine.
Sarkozy’s first trial will — finally — start on October 5 2020 and will last until October 22 2020.
This will be the first trial in several corruption investigations against Sarkozy.
Sarkozy is the first former president (2007 to 2012) of France to stand trial on corruption charges.
Sarkozy will also stand trial in March 2021 on charges of campaign finance violations during his failed 2012 re-election bid.
He is accused of spending nearly double the legal campaign spending limit of 22.5 million euros ($26.6 million). If convicted, he risks a one-year prison sentence.
Sarkozy is also suspected of having accepted millions of euros from the late Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi towards his first presidential campaign in 2007.
Last Thursday (September 24 2020), the appeals court of Paris announced that it had given the green light to go ahead with an inquiry regarding this claim.
On this third issue, Sarkozy still has an option of making a final appeal to France’s highest court.
The investigation began in 2012 after the Mediapart published a document, signed by Libya’s intelligence chief, which revealed that Mr Gaddafi had agreed to hand over the cash to Mr Sarkozy.
UPDATE (October 16 2020) — Today, the National Financial Prosecutor’s Office confirmed that Nicolas Sarkozy is indicted for “criminal association”.
The former President of the Republic has been heard for several hours in recent weeks at the financial center of the Paris court in the case of suspicion of Libyan funding for his 2007 election campaign.
In this case, Nicolas Sarkozy had already been indicted for “passive corruption”, “concealment of embezzlement of public funds” and “illegal campaign financing”.
REFERENCES
Gaddafi ‘contributed €50m to Sarkozy’s 2007 presidential election fund’ — The Guardian March 2012
Un carnet consignait en 2007 les millions libyens de Nicolas Sarkozy — MEDIAPART Sept 27 2016
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Dead Man’s Diary: Sarkozy’s 2007 Presidential Election Campaign Funded by Gaddafi
One Year Ago — Dead Man’s Diary: Sarkozy’s 2007 Presidential Election Campaign Funded by Gaddafi
Two Years Ago — Dead Man’s Diary : Sarkozy’s 2007 Presidential Election Campaign Funded by Gaddafi
Three Years Ago — Dead Man Diary : Sarkozy 2007 Presidential Election Campaign Funded by Gaddafi
Four Years Ago — Dead Man Diary : Sarkozy 2007 Presidential Election Campaign Funded by Gaddafi
Four Years Ago — Dead Man Diary : Sarkozy 2007 Presidential Election Campaign Funded by Gaddafi [UPDATE : Nicolas Sarkozy Indicted for “Criminal Association”]
Four Years Ago — Dead Man Diary : Sarkozy 2007 Presidential Election Campaign Funded by Gaddafi [UPDATE : Prosecutors seek 4-years prison term for ex-president Sarkozy in Libya graft trial]
BREAKING — Dead Man Diary : Sarkozy 2007 Presidential Election Campaign Funded by Gaddafi [UPDATE : Sarkozy guilty of corruption and sentenced to one year in prison]
Dead Man Diary : Sarkozy 2007 Presidential Election Campaign Funded by Gaddafi? [UPDATE : Prosecutor seeks prison time — again — for French ex-president Sarkozy]
Five Years Ago — Dead Man Diary : Sarkozy 2007 Presidential Election Campaign Funded by Gaddafi? [UPDATE : Sarkozy guilty of illegal campaign financing, 1-year sentence]
Five Years Ago — Dead Man Diary : Sarkozy 2007 Presidential Election Campaign Funded by Gaddafi? [UPDATE : French prosecutors seek trial for Sarkozy over Libya financing for 2007 campaign]
Five Years Ago — Dead Man Diary : Sarkozy 2007 Presidential Election Campaign Funded by Gaddafi? [UPDATE : French court upholds three-year sentence for ex-president Sarkozy in wiretapping case]
Intel Today 