Former French President Nicolas Sarkozy is set to appear in a Paris court on March 16 for the start of his appeal trial over allegations of illegal campaign

financing from Libya, the court announced Thursday.

Sarkozy, who led France from 2007 to 2012, was convicted in September by a lower court for seeking funds from the regime of the late Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi to support his 2007 presidential campaign. He was sentenced to five years in prison but was released after serving just 20 days following a judge’s order.

The 70-year-old immediately appealed the ruling. The lower court had initially ordered him jailed, citing the “exceptional gravity” of the conviction. With the appeal, Sarkozy is again presumed innocent while proceedings are underway, with the trial expected to continue until June 3, according to the Paris appeals court.

Sarkozy made history when he entered La Santé prison on October 21, becoming the first former leader of a European Union state to be incarcerated. Prosecutors allege that his aides, acting on his behalf, struck a deal with Gaddafi in 2005 to secure illegal funding for his campaign. In return, Gaddafi reportedly expected Sarkozy’s support in rehabilitating Libya’s international image following its alleged involvement in the 1988 Lockerbie bombing and a 1989 plane attack in Niger.

While the court convicted Sarkozy of criminal conspiracy over the plan, it did not establish that he directly received or used the funds for his campaign.

This case is the latest in a series of legal challenges for Sarkozy, who has faced multiple convictions since leaving office in 2012. Photo by World Economic Forum, Wikimedia commons.