Political Impact
Among those pressing charges was prominent French politician Nicolas Sarkozy, who was preparing his (ultimately successful) campaign for the French presidency.
Sarkozy's main political rival on the right-wing of French politics at the time was Interior Minister Dominique de Villepin. It later transpired that de Villepin had known about the existence of the lists since at least January 2004. As Interior Minister, he would also have known that French secret services considered the lists to be forgeries. However, he did not pass this information on to Judge van Ruymbeke. Villepin was indicted on charges of complicity to false denunciation on 18 November 2008, and tried at the Paris Correctional Court in September and October 2009. He was acquitted of the charges on 28 January 2010. Three co-defendants were convicted for their roles in the affair, while a fifth person was acquitted.
Read more about this topic: Clearstream Affair
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