Paris, Oct 21 (AP) Former French President Nicolas Sarkozy arrived at a prison in Paris on Tuesday to begin serving a 5-year sentence for a criminal conspiracy to finance his 2007 election campaign with funds from Libya.

He is the first ex-leader of modern France to be imprisoned.

Sarkozy, hand-in-hand with his wife Carla Bruni-Sarkozy, left home before getting into a car and travelling to the La Sante prison.

On his way to prison, Sarkozy said in a statement released on social media that “an innocent man” was being locked up.

He was convicted last month for criminal conspiracy in a scheme to finance his 2007 election campaign with funds from Libya.

Sarkozy contests both the conviction and a judge's unusual decision to incarcerate him pending appeal. His journey from the presidential

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