Former French President Nicolas Sarkozy was on Thursday sentenced to a five-year prison for criminal conspiracy, the first time a former head of state has been sent to prison in modern French history.

The case is related to him and his aides allegedly making a corruption pact with the regime of the late Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi in return of receiving funding for the 2007 French presidential election campaign.

According to The Guardian, head judge, Nathalie Gavarino, handed down a special form of sentence that means Sarkozy, 70, will have to serve a prison term even if he appeals. She justified the conviction and sentencing on the grounds the offences were of “exceptional gravity" and “likely to undermine citizens’ trust."

Sarkozy, France’s rightwing president from 2007 to 2012, h

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