Former French president Nicolas Sarkozy was accompanied by two police officers during his first night in prison, and for his safety they stayed in an adjacent cell, the interior minister said.
Laurent Nuñez confirmed that the former president, who is serving a five-year sentence after being convicted of criminal conspiracy, will continue to receive protection in prison “given his position and the threats he faces.”
Speaking on radio station Europe 1 on Wednesday, the minister added that safety measures would remain in place “as long as they are deemed necessary”.
“I am responsible for the security of individuals and senior officials,” Nuñez said, explaining that it was his decision to extend Sarkozy’s protection during his sentence.
“This was clearly a decision aimed at ensuring his safety, in addition to everything that prison management had put in place,” he added.
Nicola Palin, deputy executive director of the prison officers’ union, told CNN affiliate BFMTV that the additional security provided to the former president was not necessary. “I don’t understand why the Home Office would intervene in detention matters,” he said. “We already know how to do it well.”
Mr Sarkozy’s lawyer, Jean-Michel Dalois, appeared on BFMTV on Tuesday night and insisted his client had not received special treatment.
“He’s in a cell that’s 9 meters by 9 meters (almost 97 square feet) and there’s always noise. All the prisoners are making noise, screaming, banging on the walls,” Dalois said. “In principle, given the positions he has held so far, he should have a separate position. He didn’t ask for it, so he doesn’t have it,” he added.
Sarkozy’s other lawyer, Christophe Inglein, who left the prison after a meeting on Wednesday morning, declined to comment to journalists about Sarkozy’s police protection.
Last month, Sarkozy was found guilty of conspiracy for his role in a scheme to finance his 2007 presidential campaign with money from Libya in exchange for diplomatic favors.
The former president, who left office in 2012, has appealed his conviction and is expected to remain in solitary confinement or a cell in the so-called “VIP wing” of the La Santé prison complex.
This wing is typically reserved for prisoners who are considered unsuitable to be part of the prison’s general population due to safety concerns.
Sarkozy is allowed three visits a week, one of which has already been used by his wife, singer and model Carla Bruni-Sarkozy, who visited her husband on Tuesday, BFMTV reported.
Dalois revealed that on his first day in prison, the former president spent time campaigning and started writing a book. The lawyer said Mr Sarkozy’s concerns were not for himself but for his loved ones. “If he’s worried about anything, it’s about his family,” he said.
Guillaume Sarkozy, the former leader’s brother, told BFMTV: “I’m proud that we have the same name. I’m proud that he will go to prison with his head held high and I am completely convinced of his innocence.”
Cecilia Laurent Montpetit contributed to this report.
