Nicolas Sarkozy was being grilled by judges in a criminal court today two days after being heralded as the politician to save France from Socialism . The 60-year-old is facing charges over the funding of his failed 2012 bid to retain the presidency of the country . Images of Sarkozy arriving at a specialist financial court in Paris today are a huge embarrassment for a politician who still thinks he can return to power . Slinking back into public view : Nicolas Sarkozy is driven to court where he faces charges over the funding of his failed 2012 bid to retain the presidency of the country - two days after being heralded as France 's saviour . Thierry Herzog , the lawyer of the former French President and current head of the right-wing UMP opposition party , arrives at the Pole Financier headquarters ( the fraud section of the courthouse ) in Paris . Not only was he roundly beaten by Francois Hollande , his detested Socialist rival , but he is alleged to have got the UMP party to pay off his personal fine approaching £500,000 for over-spending . Under French electoral law , Sarkozy should have paid the fine himself from his own funds . On Sunday , his party made massive electoral gains against the Socialists in regional elections , and Sarkozy is convinced he can become president again in 2017 . After the UMP won 66 out of 101 departments - the French equivalent of counties - Sarkozy announced : 'The French have massively rejected the policies of Francois Hollande and his government . 'Hope has been reborn in France . ' Happier outing : On Sunday , Sarkozy 's party made massive electoral gains against the Socialists in regional elections and he is convinced he can become president again in 2017 . Under pressure : France 's ruling Socialists under Francois Hollande ( pictured ) suffered a crushing defeat in regional elections at the weekend - as three years of left-wing rule was branded a 'massive failure ' But his former lieutenant Jean-François Cope has already been charged in the funding case and Sarkozy could suffer the same fate today . It will add to a long list of corruption scandals , which started for Sarkozy as soon as he lost his presidential immunity from prosecution . Within days of leaving the Elysee Palace in 2012 , the Paris home he shares with his third wife , former supermodel Carla Bruni , was raided by police . He is facing criminal charges in numerous cases , including an investigation into more than £15million of false billing by Bygmalion , an events-organising company , during the 2012 campaign . It has also been alleged that Sarkozy 's successful 2007 presidential campaign was funded by millions of pounds worth of illegal cash from Colonel Muammar Gaddafi , the late Libyan dictator . Sarkozy denies any wrongdoing in any of the cases against him . He refused to speak to reporters before arriving in court at 8am today and is expected to spend most of the day in a closed sitting with judges .
Sarkozy faces charges over funding of failed just days later bid to retain presidency . Declared that 'hope has been reborn ' after huge gains in regional elections . But 2012 , he is pictured being driven to a financial court hearing .