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Perhaps the nation's most fabled correctional facility, La Santé – in which former French president Nicolas Sarkozy has begun a five year incarceration for illegal conspiracy to obtain political donations from Libya – remains the last remaining prison inside the Paris city limits.

Located in the south part of Montparnasse neighborhood of the capital, it was inaugurated in 1867 and was the scene of a minimum of 40 executions, the final one in 1972. Partially closed for upgrades in 2014, the institution resumed operations five years later and houses more than 1,100 prisoners.

Famous former inmates comprise poet Guillaume Apollinaire, the rogue trader Jérôme Kerviel, the public servant and collaborator with the Nazis Maurice Papon, the tycoon and political figure Bernard Tapie, the 70s terrorist Carlos the Jackal, and talent scout Jean-Luc Brunel.

Protected Wing for Prominent Inmates

Notable or at-risk inmates are generally placed in the jail’s QB4 unit for “individuals at risk” – the often called “VIP section” – in single cells, rather than the usual three-inmate rooms, and kept alone during yard time for safety concerns.

Located on the ground floor, the ward has nineteen similar rooms and a private recreation area so detainees are not forced to mingle with other detainees – even though they continue to be exposed to calls, taunts and cellphone pictures from nearby cells.

Mainly for such concerns, Sarkozy will reportedly be held in the solitary confinement unit, which is in a isolated area. In reality, the environment are largely identical as in the QB4 ward: the ex-president will be alone in his unit and accompanied by a prison officer each time he exits.

“The objective is to avert any issues whatsoever, so we must prevent him from coming into contact with any inmates,” an insider commented. “The simplest and most efficient solution is to assign Nicolas Sarkozy immediately to segregation.”

Living Quarters

Each of the solitary and VIP cells are similar to those elsewhere in the prison, averaging about eleven square meters, with window coverings created to limit communication, a sleeping cot, a compact desk, a shower unit, WC, and stationary phone with pre-set numbers.

Sarkozy is provided with standard meals but will also have access to the prison store, where he can purchase groceries to make his own meals, as well as to a private outdoor space, a gym and the prison library. He can rent a refrigerator for €7.50 a month and a television for fourteen euros fifteen.

Limited Social Contact

Apart from three authorized meetings a per week, he will primarily be alone – a luxury in the prison, which notwithstanding its modernization is functioning at roughly double its intended capacity of 657 prisoners. The country's correctional facilities are the third most congested in the EU bloc.

Personal Belongings

Sarkozy, who has consistently maintained his innocence, has stated he will be carrying with him a biography of Jesus Christ and a edition of The Count of Monte Cristo, by Alexandre Dumas, in which an falsely convicted person is given a sentence to prison but flees to seek vengeance.

Sarkozy’s legal counsel, Jean-Michel Darrois, mentioned he was also taking noise blockers because the jail can be noisy at nighttime, and several sweaters, because rooms can be chilly. Sarkozy has commented he is not scared of spending time in prison and plans to make use of the period to write a manuscript.

Uncertain Duration

It is unclear, nevertheless, how long he will in fact stay in the facility: his attorneys have submitted for his premature release, and an judge on appeal will must establish a potential of escaping, further crimes or interfering with witnesses to justify his continued detention.

France's law specialists have proposed he could be out in less than a month.