Former French President Heads to Jail for Financial Conspiracy: News Digest

A former French president begins his jail sentence for financial conspiracy, The Louvre remains closed after priceless jewels were stolen from the Gallery of Apollo and expect to see pink number plates on French roads from early 2026 to help police fight vehicular fraud. Here are the French news Brits living in France must read this week.

Former French president heads to jail for financial conspiracy

Nicolas Sarkozy, who served as president from 2007-2012, entered jail today to begin his five-year sentence for using money from the late Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi to fund his election campaign. He was also ordered to pay a €100,000 fine.

If the 70-year-old does go to prison in the coming days, he will become the first former French president to do so. Sarkozy has continually denied all charges against him, including that he promised to improve the Libyan dictator’s reputation with Western countries in exchange for illegal campaign financing. 

The Louvre remains shut after centuries-old French jewels stolen

The Louvre Museum in Paris is still closed while police investigate a jewellery heist that has stunned France and beyond. It is believed four thieves used power tools to break into the world’s most visited museum in broad daylight, stole items which are kept in the Galerie d’Apollon (Gallery of Apollo) before escaping with priceless jewels on electric scooters. Eight 19^th century items were stolen, including necklaces, earrings, brooches and crowns that once belonged to French royalty. 

Two more items from The Louvre, including a crown worn by the wife of Napoleon III were found near the scene, thought to have been dropped in the escape. Experts are now examining these jewels for possible damage. This robbery is believed to be part of a wider criminal organisation, who will break apart, melt down and recut these emblems of French heritage, unless they are found soon.

You can find out more about France’s Crown Jewels here.

France to introduce pink temporary number plates in 2026

Pink temporary number plates will be introduced in early 2026 to help police tackle the rising number of vehicular fraud cases using the non-renewable plates. In France, temporary plates begin with WW and usually used for vehicles that have newly been imported to France and last from four to six months. 

These plates, used by around 400,000 vehicles in France each year, cannot be renewed and should be replaced with permanent plates once the car is fully registered and has its certificat d’immatriculation (vehicle registration certificate), more commonly known as a carte gris.

‘WW’ plates are currently identical to permanent plates with black text on a white background, meaning cars using these past their printed expiration date are far more difficult to spot than if they are pink, a colour never used before on a number plate. 

Lead photo credit : Former French Prime Minister Nicolas Sarkozy Picture: Alain Robert, Action Press, Sipa, picturedesk.com