Sarkozy faces 10 years in prison

After he was taken into custody yesterday on charges of corruption, today an official investigation was launched against former French President Nicolas Sarkozy.

If Sarkozy is convicted of "influence trading", he faces five years in prison and a fine of 500.000 euros, while the accusation of "active corruption" could bring him a sentence of up to 10 years in prison.

In the event that he is convicted, Sarkozy could also, according to French law, be sentenced to an additional penalty that foresees a ban on public office or profession or, on the other hand, exclusion from electoral lists for a limited period.

The former president of France, by all accounts, did not even have time to eat breakfast, since yesterday, accompanied by agents, he quickly put on a jacket and at half past eight in the morning was in a limousine with tinted windows that took him to the premises of the criminal police. After 15 hours of questioning, he was released from the police this morning.

Sarkozy was summoned to Nanterre and detained for questioning - an unnamed source told Reuters.

Suspects in criminal trials, according to French law, can be held in custody for up to 48 hours, after which they must either be charged or released. The formal launch of the investigation indicates "serious and consistent evidence", writes Reuters citing judicial sources.

A potential candidate in the 2017 presidential elections is suspected of abuse of office, for which he could be sentenced to five years in prison and a fine of 500.000 euros. Last year, due to a lack of evidence, he was acquitted of charges that he took 150.000 euros from the richest French woman, Liliane Betancourt, for the campaign, manipulating the mentally weak billionaire.

This is the first arrest of a former president in the history of the French state, and Sarkozy was immediately ordered by the judge to be detained for 24 hours with the possibility of an extension for another day.

The day before yesterday, anti-corruption investigators heard the lawyer Thierry Erzog and the general representatives of the Court of Cassation, Žilber Aziber and Patrik Sasu, as part of the investigation into "trading in influence" and "violation of the confidentiality of the investigation", which entails a sentence of ten years in prison.

Along with the three main lines of investigation (see box), one of the most serious accusations is that in 1995, for the needs of Eduard Baladir's presidential campaign, he provided money from the commission from the sale of three submarines to the Pakistani army.

Sarkozy took 50 million euros from Gaddafi?

Former French President Nicolas Sarkozy is the target of an investigation into allegations that he took 50 million euros in illegal campaign funds from the late Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi, according to French officials.

French Prime Minister Manuel Valls says the allegations against Sarkozy are serious and that the investigation is being conducted independently of the Socialist government that defeated Sarkozy's right-wing party in 2012 elections.

"No one is above the law," Valls told BFM television on Wednesday.

Former French Prime Minister Alain Gippe, from Sarkozy's political party, said that "Sarkozy's defense will show that he is innocent, I hope."

French daily Mond said the questioning focused on whether Sarkozy and his lawyer were getting information about the investigation from friends in court.