00:00Did inmates secretly film Sarkozy's prison cell?
00:08Croz's former president Nicolas Sarkozy began his five-year prison sentence
00:12at the prison de la santé located in Paris' 14th arrondissement on the 21st of October.
00:18He was imprisoned after being found guilty of conspiring to fund his 2007 presidential campaign
00:23with illicit funds from Libya's former leader, Gaddafi.
00:27Although several hundred people gathered outside Sarkozy's house on the morning of his incarceration,
00:31he did not get quite the same welcome once he arrived, according to videos circulating on social media.
00:37The videos have sparked speculation across France's population, as well as its political class,
00:42with many calling into question the veracity of the videos.
00:46A spokesperson for the Paris prosecutor's office confirmed to the Cube that it had been notified
00:53that a video was filmed by inmates residing in the prison where Sarkozy is held.
00:57Three individuals have in turn been placed in police custody of the matter, while authorities seized two phones.
01:03The prosecutor's office has opened an investigation for death threats directed towards Sarkozy in the video.
01:08Another source told the Cube that both videos were authentic.
01:10The French public has called into question how inmates can access smartphones and social media.
01:16Mobile phones may legally be banned in French prisons, but in practice they are commonplace.
01:2153,000 phones were seized in French prisons in 2023 and a further 40,000 the following year, according to the Ministry of Justice.
01:42French Prisoners' Rights Organisation Robin Deslois told the Cube that there are many reasons why prisoners have access to phones.
01:50It can be due to agreements struck with prison management, as well as complications around scrambling phone lines.
