Italy’s Silvio Berlusconi acquitted in ‘bunga bunga’ bribery case
- Ex-PM Silvio Berlusconi was accused of paying 24 people to provide false testimony in a trial where he was charged with paying for sex with 17-year-old dancer
- Prosecutors had demanded a six-year prison term for Berlusconi, 86, whose Forza Italia party is a key component of current PM Giorgia Meloni’s coalition
An Italian court on Wednesday acquitted former Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi over allegations of bribing witnesses in an underage prostitution case that has dogged the former prime minister for more than a decade.
Berlusconi was accused of paying 24 people, mostly young guests at his so-called ‘bunga bunga’ parties, to provide false testimony in a previous trial where he was charged with paying for sex with a 17-year-old Moroccan nightclub dancer.
In a ruling read out in court, the judge said there was no case to answer.
Prosecutors had demanded a six-year prison term for Berlusconi, whose Forza Italia party is a key component of Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni’s conservative coalition.
Berlusconi, 86, had denied the allegations and said he is the victim of a long-running plot by magistrates to hound him from politics.
“I can only express our utmost satisfaction for this unequivocal acquittal,” said Berlusconi’s lawyer Federico Cecconi.
