By Juliette Jabkhiro and Layli Foroudi

Item 1 of 3 Outside view of La Sante prison, in Paris, France May 17, 2020. REUTERS/Clotaire Achi/File Photo

[1/3] Outside view of La Sante prison, in Paris, France May 17, 2020. REUTERS/Clotaire Achi/File Photo Purchase Licensing Rights , opens new tab

PARIS, Sept 25 (Reuters) – As the shock of former French President Nicolas Sarkozy’s conviction over attempts to raise campaign funds from Libya subsides, the next big question is where he will be jailed.

French authorities have yet to say, but people familiar with the French judicial system say a likely lockup could be La Sante in Paris, a historic prison that once housed leftist militant Carlos the Jackal and former Panamanian dictator Manuel Noriega.

“It’s the prison best suited to welcome a profile such as his,” said prison guard union representative Wilfried Fonck.

He said La Sante has a wing for “vulnerable people”, the so-called “VIP quarters,” where prominent political figures have been incarcerated in the past, including Sarkozy’s former aide Claude Gueant, who was among those found guilty on Thursday.

Inmates in the VIP wing are held in single cells, unlike the usual three-person units, and kept alone during outdoor activities for security reasons. But apart from that, Fonck said the conditions are no better than elsewhere in the prison, where cells are typically 9-12 square metres (100-130 square feet).

A SHOWER, A PHONE AND A RENTED TV

Julien Fischmeister, from the French section of the International Prison Observatory, said La Sante was recently renovated, and so has better conditions than many other prisons.

Since the renovation, he said all cells have their own showers. Sarkozy would also have access to a television, but would have to pay 14 euros per month for the privilege. The cell also includes a landline telephone.

Fischmeister said Sarkozy would have meals delivered to him, although the prison also allows inmates to buy products to prepare their own meals in their cells.

“We do not wish prison on anybody, but what we can salute is that for once it is a personality representing a social circle that generally avoids prison,” Fischmeister said.

Prison could be an unsettling experience for Sarkozy, a tough-on-crime ex-president who once referred to rioting youth in the suburbs as “scum”, threatening to “clear them out” with high-powered water hoses.

Like many prisons in France, La Sante is overpopulated. There are, as of August, 1,243 inmates in the jail, which is designed to hold 657, according to Justice Ministry data.

GOVERNMENT CRACKDOWN ON PRISONS

One of Sarkozy’s political proteges, Justice Minister Gerald Darmanin, has been instrumental in a government push to toughen prison conditions for dangerous inmates.

Police say prisoners run their drug businesses via smuggled cellphones that they also use to order hits on rivals. They can even order kebabs and sushi, delivered to their cells via drones, according to videos posted online and prison officials.

Earlier this year, there were a series of nationwide attacks against prisons. Authorities allege they were orchestrated by members of a Telegram group that called itself French Prisoner Rights, and which sought to underline the terrible conditions faced by France’s inmates.

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Juliette covers matters related to justice, social issues and security -– that spans race, immigration, discrimination, sexual violence and more. She has covered some of the biggest trials taking place in France in recent years and reported investigative stories on identity politics.

Layli Foroudi covers race, social justice and inequalities in Europe. She is based in Paris.

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