Sarkozy's prison sentence was enforced immediately because of the "extraordinary seriousness" of the crime, judge Nathalie Gavarino told the court. He was incarcerated at La Sante prison in Paris last month - a stunning downfall for a man who had led France from 2007 until 2012.

Former French President Nicolas Sarkozy has been released from his “nightmare” in a Paris jail just 20 days into a five-year sentence over an alleged electoral funding conspiracy linked to the late Libyan leader Moammar Qaddafi’s regime.