The court of Nanterre (Hauts-de-Seine) delivered its judgment on Tuesday against former minister Claude Guéant, who appeared for fraud concerning the costs of his 2012 legislative campaign. He was sentenced to 18 months of imprisonment, 12 of which were suspended on probation.
His sentence will be adjusted and he will be able to benefit from house arrest under electronic surveillance.
The essential man of the presidency of Nicolas Sarkozy, now 77 years old, was in 2012 candidate for deputy in Hauts-de-Seine.
The prosecution accuses him of having knowingly reduced his campaign accounts and thus obtained a reimbursement of more than 30,000 euros.
He also has the obligation to reimburse the sums due to the Public Treasury and to indemnify the civil party.
Claude Guéant was also sentenced to a fine of 30,000 euros and must pay the "undue reimbursement" of his campaign costs, ie 30,529 euros.
The court also sentenced him to a ban on management for five years and a deprivation of his civic rights.
During the trial in October, the prosecution had requested three years of probationary imprisonment.
A four-page letter at the heart of the case
“The probity of future elected officials begins with the probity of the candidates who seek the votes”, had castigated the prosecutor.
A four-page letter is at the heart of this case.
In this letter of January 3, 2012, Pierre-Christophe Baguet, UMP mayor (now LR) of Boulogne-Billancourt and outgoing deputy of Hauts-de-Seine, announced that he would support Claude Guéant to succeed him in the National Assembly.
He had attached the declaration of candidacy of the latter.
The latter, also on trial, was sentenced on Tuesday to an eight-month simple suspended sentence and a fine of 3,750 euros.
The prosecutor accuses the two men of having sought to finance "this propaganda document" by the city of Boulogne-Billancourt.
The two defendants contest.
The prosecution had requested the maximum sentence for illicit campaign financing against Pierre-Christophe Baguet, i.e. one year's suspended prison sentence and a fine of 3,750 euros.
He also asked for suspended prison sentences or fines against two former employees of the town hall and the manager of a printing press, who pleaded for release.
During his trial, Claude Guéant said he had “the feeling of very great injustices” in the face of “repeated” criminal proceedings.
Incarcerated in December 2021
He is the first tenant of Place Beauvau to have been imprisoned, from December 13, 2021 to February 9, 2022. had been ordered to pay in the case of cash bonuses from the Ministry of the Interior.
The ex-minister must also be retried in the Elysée polls file, after appealing his sentence to one year in prison, including eight months, for favoritism.
He is also indicted in the case of suspicions of Libyan financing of the victorious presidential campaign of Nicolas Sarkozy in 2007.