Former Italian prime minister Silvio Berlusconi was aware that a teenage dancer he had sexual relations with “in exchange for considerable sums of money” was underage, a court said today.
It said it was “proved” Berlusconi had relations with Moroccan Karima El Mahroug, who was nicknamed Ruby the Heartstealer and 17 at the time.
Berlusconi was handed a seven-year jail sentence in June for abuse of office and paying for sex with a minor. A court in Milan today explained the conviction in a document.
It said: “It is proved that the defendant had sexual relations with El Mahroug in exchange for considerable sums of money and other items such as jewellery.”
The court said the politician “was aware of the minority of the girl”.
It also described him as “director” of the notorious “Bunga, Bunga” parties “in which female guests operated to satisfy the will of the accused”.
Berlusconi has appealed the June sentence. It is one of a number of legal problems the media magnate has faced in recent years, including a conviction for tax fraud and allegations of bribery.
