Berlusconi faces new investigations in prostitution case (and he's not happy)

Thursday, 23 January 2014. Silvio Berlusconi – who has already been given a 7-year sentence – risks to get more as prosecutors investigate over accusations he and his lawyers corrupted witnesses of the sex scandal trial.

The investigations over the alleged prostitution ring set by Mr Berlusconi aren't finished yet, we are now in the so-called phase three  - according to the news -, aka Rubygate ter or Rubygate 3.0 (the name originates from Ruby the Heartstealer, the nom de guerre – the real name is Karima El Mahroug - of the girl who apparently had sex with the politician when still a teenager).

Silvio Berlusconi faces yet another investigation linked to the bunga-bunga sex scandal

The two previous spells of the proceedings were pretty disastrous for the former prime minister and his friends... With the first episode of the sex scandal trial, Berlusconi won a 7-year sentence (child prostitution and abuse of office), with the second stint – the Ruby-bis - it was his protégé Nicole Minetti and one of his friends and employee Emilio Fede who received a conviction. 7 years apiece, details in our post (click here to read it). 

And now – with the Ruby-ter - also the lawyers of Mr Berlusconi risks to join the lively bunch of people convicted for involvement in the story, with the accusation of tampering of witnesses. 

Niccolò Ghedini and Piero Longo – long-time lawyers of the former prime minister – are indicted, as well as 42 other individuals, amongst them a few “olgettine”, women kept by Berlusconi for acting in the bunga-bunga parties who were given “money and other benefits” to give misleading evidence in the case (and sometimes to dance half-naked).

Berlusconi's reaction to the pretty gloomy picture? “I will remain in place” declared the 77-year-old billionaire, saying that he is “more convinced than ever of the need to keep fighting for what I believe in profoundly.”. That is – first of all – to keep himself out of jail, an exercise more and more difficult to do, since the definitive conviction for fraud and the following ban from parliament and other public office.