Former French President Nicolas Sarkozy is to face trial over charges he misused his influence to secure leaked details of an inquiry into alleged irregularities in his 2007 election campaign, Le Monde reported on Thursday. The probe related to alleged Libyan funding for his 2007 campaign, Le Monde newspaper reported.
The case came about after investigators used phone-taps to examine separate allegations that late Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi funded Sarkozy’s campaign and began to suspect he had kept tabs on a separate case through a network of informants.
It was claimed Libya's former dictator Muammar Gaddafi, who was killed during an uprising in 2011, had given 50 million euros to Mr Sarkozy's first presidential campaign. The former president has previously denied the allegations, dismissing them as "grotesque".
He had claimed the allegations surfaced as an act of revenge by the Gaddafi family following the collapse of its regime in the North African country. Brice Hortefeux, a former minister and close ally of Mr Sarkozy, was also being questioned by police on Tuesday morning, a source told Reuters.
In January, French businessman Alexandre Djouhri, who was close to the former president, was released on bail after being arrested on a warrant at London's Heathrow Airport as part of the probe. The 59-year-old was accused of being an intermediary in the alleged financing from Libya, and is wanted for questioning in France.
France opened a judicial inquiry into the matter in 2013. Mr Sarkozy's time in and after office has been marred by political and financial scandal, with accusations of illegal campaign funding and corruption.
He has already been ordered to stand trial in a separate matter related to the financing of his failed re-election campaign in 2012.
He served as president until May 2012 when he was defeated by Socialist Party candidate Francois Hollande.
