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Former French President Sarkozy sentenced to three years in jail on corruption charges

FORMER French president Nicolas Sarkozy was sentenced to three years in prison on corruption charges by a Paris court today, with two of them suspended.

He was found guilty of forming a “corruption pact” with his lawyer Thierry Herzog and Gilbert Azibert, a senior magistrate who was offered a job on the Cote d’Azur in return for information on a separate investigation into whether Mr Sarkozy had received donations from the L’Oreal heiress Liliane Bettencourt.

It means Mr Sarkozy will not be able to stand in next year’s presidential elections, a blow to his centre-right Les Republicans party, which has struggled to find a credible candidate to challenge President Emmanuel Macron.

He will serve his sentence at home, fitted with an electronic tag, and is unlikely to spend any time behind bars. 

Mr Sarkozy, who initially welcomed the trial as a chance to clear his name, has said he will appeal. Mr Herzog and Mr Azibert received similar sentences.

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