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Perhaps the nation's most notorious jail, La Santé – where former French president Nicolas Sarkozy has begun a five-year incarceration for unlawful collusion to obtain campaign funds from the Libyan government – stands as the sole surviving prison within the Paris city limits.

Situated in the southern Montparnasse neighborhood of the city, it first opened in 1867 and hosted of at least 40 executions, the most recent in 1972. Partly closed for upgrades in 2014, the prison reopened in 2019 and accommodates more than 1,100 prisoners.

Famous ex- detainees encompass the poet Guillaume Apollinaire, the rogue trader Jérôme Kerviel, the public servant and Nazi collaborator Maurice Papon, the tycoon and politician Bernard Tapie, the terrorist from the 1970s Carlos the Jackal, and modeling agent Jean-Luc Brunel.

Special Treatment for High-Profile Inmates

Notable or at-risk prisoners are usually held in the prison's QB4 ward for “individuals at risk” – the so-called “VIP section” – in single cells, rather than the standard three-person cells, and kept alone during outdoor activities for protection purposes.

Positioned on the initial level, the section has nineteen similar units and a dedicated outdoor space so inmates are not required to mix with other detainees – although they remain subject to calls, jeers and cellphone pictures from adjacent cells.

Primarily for that reason, Sarkozy is expected to be placed in the solitary confinement unit, which is in a separate wing. Practically, the environment are very similar as in the protected unit: the ex-president will be by himself in his cell and escorted by a prison officer whenever he leaves it.

“The aim is to prevent any issues whatsoever, so we must stop him from encountering other prisoners,” an insider stated. “The most straightforward and best method is to assign Nicolas Sarkozy straight to isolation.”

Living Quarters

Each of the solitary and VIP rooms are the same to those in other parts in the institution, averaging about 10 sq metres, with coverings on windows designed to restrict contact, a bed, a small desk, a shower, WC, and stationary phone with authorized contacts only.

Sarkozy will be served standard meals but will additionally have access to the prison store, where he can acquire items to prepare himself, as well as to a small solitary exercise yard, a gym and the library. He can rent a cooling unit for €7.50 a per month and a television for €14.15.

Limited Social Contact

Besides three allowed visits a per week, he will primarily be by himself – a privilege in the prison, which in spite of its recent upgrades is operating at about twice its planned occupancy of 657 prisoners. France’s prisons are the third most packed in the EU.

Items Brought

Sarkozy, who has consistently protested his non-guilt, has stated he will be bringing with him a life story of Jesus and a copy of The Count of Monte Cristo, by the author Alexandre Dumas, in which an innocent man is given a sentence to jail but breaks out to take revenge.

Sarkozy’s legal counsel, Jean-Michel Darrois, said he was also taking earplugs because prison can be loud at nighttime, and several sweaters, because cells can be cool. Sarkozy has commented he is unafraid of serving time in jail and intends to use it to compose a book.

Possible Early Release

The duration is unknown, nevertheless, for how long he will really stay in the prison: his lawyers have submitted for his early release, and an reviewing judge will must establish a chance of flight, reoffending or witness-tampering to justify his further imprisonment.

French law specialists have proposed he could be out within a month.