Carla Bruni Says Sarkozy Charges are 'Painful'
Carla Bruni said the charges faced by her husband and former French president Nicolas Sarkozy Nicolas Sarkozy in connection with a probe into illegal party funding were "painful" for her and her family, local media reported Wednesday.
"It's painful to talk about it and equally painful to not talk about it. It's painful for the family," the singer said, wiping away a tear, in an interview with Le Parisien published Wednesday.
But the one-time first lady and former model said her husband was feeling "serene and combative" after he was charged on Thursday with taking advantage of France's richest woman, Liliane Bettencourt, when she was weakened by ill health.
The decision came after Sarkozy was summoned for face-to-face encounters with former members of Bettencourt's staff, including her butler, in an investigation into allegations he accepted envelopes stuffed with cash from the elderly L'Oreal heiress to fund his 2007 election campaign.
"We will do everything we can so the truth comes out," Bruni told Le Parisien.
"It's unthinkable to imagine that a man like him could take advantage of the weakness of a woman the same age as his mother."
Investigators suspect up to four million euros ($5.2 million) of Bettencourt's cash made its way into the coffers of Sarkozy's UMP party. Bettencourt is now 90 and has been incapacitated since 2006, according to doctors.
On Monday, Sarkozy used his Facebook page to insist the charges against him were "unfair and unfounded".
If convicted, Sarkozy could face up to three years in jail, a fine of 375,000 euros ($484,000), and a five-year ban from public office.
Source: Agence France Presse
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