Former French President Nicolas Sarkozy was sentenced to a year in prison after being found guilty of overspending on political campaigns

• Former French President Nicolas Sarkozy was sentenced to a year in prison.
• He was found guilty of illegal campaign financing and accused of spending more than legally allowed.
• This is the second time he has been sentenced and given prison time, though he is appealing both.
• See more stories on Insider’s business page.

Nicolas Sarkozy, the former president of France, was sentenced to a year in prison after a Paris court found him guilty of overspending in a political campaign.

Prosecutors said that Sarkozy, 66, overspent during his failed campaign to get reelected in 2012, Reuters reported. He ultimately lost that campaign to François Hollande.

They said he spent nearly double the 22.5 million euros (currently valued at $19.43 million) that electoral law allowed him to spend.

Sarkozy denied the allegations, and said he was not involved in the logistics of his campaign or its spending, Reuters reported.

The judge said Sarkozy could serve the sentence at home with an electronic tag, the BBC reported. Sarkozy also plans to appeal the sentence, Reuters reported.

Sarkozy, who served as president from 2007 to 2012, is the first former French president to be given a criminal sentence.

This is also Sarkozy’s second criminal sentence: He was given a three-year prison sentence in this March as part of a corruption scandal.

Two of those years were suspended, and Sarkozy has not spent any time in prison ye as he is appealing the ruling.