PARIS (AP) — Former French President Nicolas Sarkozy is to head to prison Tuesday to serve time for a criminal conspiracy to finance his 2007 election campaign with funds from Libya, the first ex-leader of modern France to be imprisoned.

Sarkozy contests both the conviction and a judge’s unusual decision to incarcerate him pending appeal. His journey from the presidential Elysée Palace to the notorious La Santé prison in Paris has captivated France.

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