Friday

29th Mar 2024

Berlusconi to stand trial over 'bunga bunga' charges

  • Mr Berlusconi's troubles are accelerating (Photo: The Council of the European Union)

Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi has been indicted to stand trial for paying for sex with an underage girl and abuse of power at his infamous 'bunga bunga' parties, the latest in a series of scandals which may finally put and an end to his political career.

A judge on Tuesday (15 February) approved a request by Milan prosecutors to have an immediate trial due to the "obvious evidence" and ruled that the proceedings will start on 6 April. If convicted, Mr Berlusconi could face up to 15 years in prison.

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The trial is set to be presided over by three female judges, Giulia Turri, Orsola De Cristoforo, and Carmen D' Elia, known as tough but fair jurists.

Upon hearing the news, the prime minister interrupted a press conference he was holding in Sicily and flew back to Rome to meet his lawyers.

Both he and the girl in question, Karima El Mahroug, deny having had sexual relations. But the Moroccan dancer, also known by her stage name "Ruby the Heartstealer", admits having visited Mr Berlusconi's mansion on several occasions when she was 17 and having received money and jewellery from the Italian premier who "took pity on her."

Although he denies having abused his office, Mr Berlusconi did admit he phoned a police station where Ms El Mahroug was being held in custody for stealing and having ordered her release, saying she was the granddaughter of former Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak. He said he wanted to avoid a "diplomatic incident" and truly believed the Moroccan was related to the Egyptian strongman.

Hundreds of thousands of Italian women took to the streets across Italy on Sunday and protested against the "shameful" and sexist behaviour of the 74-year old premier, telling him to leave office at once.

Their outrage was sparked by leaked wiretaps confirming what paparazzi and press had speculated all along about Mr Berlusconi's legendary "bunga bunga" parties involving young women dressed as nurses and police officers and paid with jewellery and thousands of euros for sex.

According to Italian media, one wiretap on Ms El Mahroug's phone recorded her telling a friend she had been a visitor at Berlusconi's house since she was 16 but always denied everything.

In another recording, she told her boyfriend about asking "Silvio" for €5 million as compensation for the bad publicity. Apparently, Mr Berlusconi had agreed: "He called me himself, telling me, 'Ruby, I'll give you as much money as you want ... I'll cover you in gold. But the important thing is that you hide everything. Don't tell anybody anything'," she said, according to the transcripts.

In addition to the Ruby scandal, another underage showgirl, Iris Berardi, also allegedly attended the premier's parties. Documents submitted to a parliamentary committee in January that Ms Berardi, a Brazilian prostitute and showgirl, went to the Berlusconi mansions in Sardinia and Milan before turning 18.

Mr Berlusconi's lawyers said these claims were politically motivated and "scandalous", as the parties were only about watching football and drinking Coca-Cola, with no prostitutes or underage girls involved.

Sex scandals have been surrounding the Italian premier for years, culminating with the divorce filed by his wife in 2009 who stated she could no longer live with a "deranged man" who "frequents minors." So far he had managed to avoid prosecution on underage sex charges, as he enjoyed immunity until a recent verdict by the Constitutional court saying judges are allowed to decide whether ministers should be tried while in office.

Three other court cases, regarding his financial dealings, are also set to start, fuelling opposition demands for him to step down.

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