Nicolas Sarkozy has said he wants to “prove his innocence” after being released from prison while he appeals against his conviction for criminal conspiracy over a scheme to obtain election campaign funds from Libya.
After 20 days in jail that he had earlier described as “gruelling” and a “nightmare”, the former French president was driven away from La Santé prison in Paris on Monday accompanied by his wife, the singer Carla Bruni-Sarkozy.