French ex-President Sarkozy to stand trial over campaign funding

Former French President Nicolas Sarkozy will stand trial over allegations of illegally financing his failed 2012 re-election bid, a judicial source said on Tuesday.

The source added that 13 others would also face trial over the so-called 'Bygmalion Affair', which has involved charges of spending overruns and funding irregularities.

According to AFP news agency, one of two judges in charge of the case, Serge Tournaire, had decided on 3 February that the case should go to trial after the failure of Sarkozy's legal efforts to prevent it in December.

Sarkozy’s 2012 re-election campaign costs were more than twice the legal limit. It is alleged he expended the spending limit of €22.5 million through false invoices issued by the Bygmalion PR company. The company also billed Sarkozy's party, then the UMP, instead of billing the president's campaign.

Sarkozy was previously placed under investigation in a probe into his campaign funding, but he has repeatedly denied knowledge of the overspending because he was not involved in the details of his campaign finance.

Questioned by police in September 2015, Sarkozy said he did not recall ever being warned about the accounting and described the controversy as a "farce", putting the responsibility squarely on Bygmalion and the UMP.

Executives from the company have acknowledged the existence of fraud and false accounting and the trial will focus on whether Sarkozy himself was aware or taking decisions about it.

The decision to put Sarkozy on trial comes as French politicians face growing scrutiny over their personal finances in the build-up to this year's presidential election in April and May.