Former Italian premier on trial for allegedly paying 17-year-old Moroccan girl for sex, then
using his influence in 2010 to cover it up
ROME – A model
testified Monday that female guests at Silvio Berlusconi‘s “bunga bunga” parties dressed up like
nuns in the “Sister Act” musical, then stripped to their underwear.
The former Italian premier is on trial for
allegedly paying a 17-year-old Moroccan girl for sex, then using his influence as Italian premier in 2010 to cover it up. He
has denied the charges.
State TV quoted witness Imane Fadil as telling the Milan court that two young women at the
party wore black tunics, crosses, and white head coverings, danced like “Sister Act” characters, then stripped down to their
underwear. Fadil is also Moroccan.
At
a different soiree, Fadil testified, a young woman put on a jersey and mask to dress up like Brazilian soccer star Ronaldinho, then took them off to reveal skimpy
panties. Ronhadinho used to play for AC Milan, the soccer club owned by Berlusconi.
Prostitution is legal in Italy,
but paying for sex with a minor is a crime.
Berlusconi, who resigned in November under pressure from financial markets
during Italy’s debt crisis, didn’t attend Monday’s trial session.
Last year, details from prosecutors’ documents
revealed that a Berlusconi crony purportedly told a young woman to dress up as a sexy nurse and pretend to examine the media
mogul as a joke. The same prosecutors’ documents claimed that an unidentified person told police that policewomen’s
uniforms also were available at the parties. That allegation prompted a protest from a police union.
Sessions in the
Berlusconi trial are held a few times a month and are scheduled to continue until the end of May. If convicted, the former
premier could be barred permanently from holding public office.
He has turned over the formal leadership of his
political party to his former justice minister and indicated he might not run for what would be a fourth stint as
premier.