Former French President Nicolas Sarkozy has been handed a five-year prison sentence by a Paris court after being found guilty of criminal conspiracy tied to suspected Libyan financing of his 2007 presidential campaign. The verdict, delivered on Thursday, marks an unprecedented punishment for a former French head of state and adds to the series of legal woes Sarkozy has faced in recent years.

While the court cleared him of charges related to corruption and illegal campaign financing, it concluded that Sarkozy had knowingly allowed his inner circle to engage in illicit efforts to secure funding from Libya under the late leader Muammar Gaddafi. Prosecutors argued that Sarkozy, while serving as France’s interior minister in 2005, sought financial contributions from Gaddafi’s regime in return for diplomatic legitimacy and support on the global stage. Though the court acknowledged there was no conclusive evidence directly linking Sarkozy to any personal agreement with Gaddafi or confirming that Libyan money entered his campaign, it still found him culpable for enabling a network that conspired to violate campaign finance laws.

Several of Sarkozy’s close allies were also convicted, including his former chief of staff Claude Guéant, who was found guilty of corruption, and ex-Interior Minister Brice Hortefeux, who faced conspiracy charges. Despite these legal setbacks and earlier convictions, Sarkozy remains an influential figure in French politics. He has been seen engaging with key political figures such as Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu and has publicly expressed support for Marine Le Pen’s far-right National Rally, labeling it a legitimate part of the French republican political spectrum.

Notably, Sarkozy was stripped of the prestigious Legion of Honour earlier this year, a symbolic blow to his legacy. His legal team has strongly rejected the court’s decision and has announced plans to appeal.