A French official has told reporters that former President Nicolas Sarkozy was in police custody, being questioned over his election campaign financing in 2007.

France opened a judicial inquiry in 2013 into allegations that Sarkozy's successful election bid benefited from illicit funds from the Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi. Sarkozy served as president from 2007 to 2012. He has always denied the accusations and has dismissed the Libyan allegations as "grotesque". A former minister and close ally of Sarkozy, Brice Hortefeux, was also being questioned by police on Tuesday in relation to the Libya investigation.