France's highest court has upheld a sentence against former French President Nicolas Sarkozy over the illegal financing of his 2012 re-election campaign.
He was found guilty of overspending on his campaign and then hiring a PR firm named Bygmalion to cover it up.
Sarkozy, who is now 70, received a one-year sentence in 2024, with six months suspended, allowing him to serve part of it under electronic monitoring instead of in jail.
Despite the allegations, Sarkozy has consistently denied any wrongdoing.
Prosecutors revealed that Sarkozy's UMP party nearly doubled the €22.5m (£19.4m) limit for campaign spending, incurring costs on extravagant rallies and events.
In attempts to obscure these expenses, the party instructed Bygmalion to invoice them instead of directly billing the campaign.
This marks Sarkozy's second definitive conviction; last December, his corruption conviction was upheld, also leading to six months of electronic monitoring.
Earlier this year, he faced a five-year prison sentence for criminal conspiracy, serving 20 days before being released in November.
An appeal trial is scheduled for next year, during which Sarkozy must adhere to strict judicial oversight and cannot leave France.
Recently, following his release, Sarkozy announced he is writing a memoir about his three weeks in jail, titled A prisoner's diary, sharing thoughts on his experience behind bars.
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