In France, the detention, the so-called "garde a vue" regime, is an absolutely unprecedented measure against a former tenant of the Elysée: this morning it was the turn of former French president Nicholas Sarkozy, whom the investigators can now detain for 24 hours, with the possible possibility of extending the detention for another day.
Sarko was summoned at dawn by the judges of Nanterre, in the suburbs of Paris, to be questioned on the story of the leak of news on the interception measure against him in the context of alleged illicit funding by Libya of Muammar Gaddafi for his campaign presidential election in 2007. The charge is extortion and violation of the secrecy of the investigation: according to the investigators, the former leader of the transalpine right attempted to obtain information from a magistrate on an investigation that concerned him, in exchange for the promise of a prestigious role . Sarkozy's lawyer, Thierry Herzog, was already arrested yesterday, together with two senior magistrates, Gilbert Azibert and Patrick Sassoust.
The homes and offices of Azibert and Herzog had already been searched in early March, while the lawyer's mobile phone and computer equipment had already been seized.
The judicial slate comes at the worst moment for Sarkozy, whose return to politics was expected shortly to take over the head of the conservative UMP party, now in opposition. In turn, the UMP has recently been engulfed in a scandal related to false invoices. Meanwhile, however, the party is uniting around the historical leader: "Persecuted by the magistrates", several deputies say in unison, who are also organizing a large protest demonstration for tomorrow.
