Berlusconi acquitted of bribery in ‘bunga bunga’ party case

Rome, Feb 15 (EFE).- Former Italian prime minister Silvio Berlusconi was acquitted Wednesday of bribing witnesses to lie about private parties he held in 2010.

The 86-year-old tycoon was accused of corruption for allegedly paying young women to lie about the so-called “bunga bunga” parties, which many said were orgies but which Berlusconi insisted were “elegant” dinner parties.

Twenty-eight defendants, including dancer Karima El Mahrough, also known as Ruby, were also acquitted of charges of perjury.

In a statement, Berlusconi lauded his acquittal after “11 years of suffering, slander and incalculable political damage.”

Berlusconi is now a senator and is a member of the Forza Italia party, which is part of the country’s governing right-wing coalition presided by Giorgia Meloni.

The conservative politician’s right-hand man, Antonio Tajani, current vice president and foreign minister, celebrated this “very good news.”

“I had no doubts about his innocence. The Forza Italia community celebrates its leader,” he said on Twitter. EFE

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