Former French president Nicolas Sarkozy was subjected to four days of questioning earlier this month by judges leading a complex investigation into evidence of Libyan funding of his 2007 election campaign, at the end of which he was formally placed under investigation for “criminal conspiracy”. Mediapart has obtained access to the transcripts of the interrogation, during which he insisted on his innocence and laid responsibility for any wrongdoing on his two longstanding, loyal right-hand men, Claude Guéant and Brice Hortefeux, describing their dealings with Libya and intermediaries as, variously, “incomprehensible”, an “error” and a “mistake”. Fabrice Arfi and Karl Laske report.
MediapartMediapart has gained access to the transcripts of four days of questioning this month of Nicolas Sarkozy by judges leading an investigation into evidence of Libyan funding of his 2007 presidential election campaign, and reveals here how the former French president has chosen to disavow his loyal, long-serving right-hand men, claiming he knew nothing of their actions.