Sarkozy files legal complaint over love life article

France’s newly married president, Nicolas Sarkozy, filed a legal complaint today over a media report saying he promised to call off his engagement if his ex-wife came back to him, his lawyer said.

In a statement, Thierry Herzog said the complaint accused the website of the weekly newsmagazine Nouvel Observateur of having made the story up. The charges, which include “using falsehoods,” are punishable by fines and up to three years in prison.

The report on Wednesday, alleged Sarkozy sent his ex-wife, Cecilia Sarkozy, a text reading “If you come back, I’ll cancel everything” eight days before his marriage last Saturday to top model-turned-singer Carla Bruni.

He got no response, the report said.

The report alleged that despite his high-profile romance with Bruni, “Nicolas Sarkozy’s real obsession was and remains Cecilia Sarkozy.” Cecilia and Nicolas Sarkozy ended their 11-year marriage in October.

Bruni and Sarkozy went public with their relationship in December, less than a month after they reportedly met. Photographs of the couple strolling hand-in-hand in the ruins in Petra, Jordan and frolicking on the beach at an Egyptian resort have made the front pages of newspapers.

The report cites unnamed witnesses as saying Sarkozy appeared “less happy that one could have imagined” during his wedding to Bruni.

The two tied the knot in a discreet ceremony Saturday in the presidential Elysee Palace before about 20 friends and family members. Those present included Mathilde Agostinelli, a PR director for luxury brand Prada and one of Cecilia Sarkozy’s closest friends, the report said.

The wedding was the third for 53-year-old Sarkozy, who has three sons. It was the first for Bruni, who has a young son from a previous relationship. A long-time top model, Bruni, 40, has reinvented herself as a singer in recent years.

The legal complaint was aimed at guaranteeing fair treatment for the French leader, lawyer Herzog said.

“The president doesn’t want to be treated any better or any worse than any other citizen,” Herzog said.

Earlier this week, Sarkozy and Bruni won a lawsuit against low-cost airline Ryanair, which was ordered to pay a £45,000 (€60,374) fine for creating an advertisement featuring a photo of the couple.

The advertisement, which appeared in Le Parisien newspaper on January 28, showed Sarkozy and Bruni gazing skyward, with a think bubble over Bruni’s head reading, “With Ryanair, my whole family will be able to attend my wedding.”

Sarkozy and Bruni had filed separate lawsuits seeking damages for the carrier’s use of the image for commercial purposes without permission.