ROME (Sputnik) — A Naples court sentenced Italy's former Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi to three years in jail on Wednesday for allegedly bribing senators in 2007.
According to the prosecution, Berlusconi, being in opposition, spent million of euros on bribing a number of senators from the ruling coalition to switch sides.
The trial for the case was initiated in Naples in February 2014. Prosecutors initially demanded a five-year sentence for the former prime minister.
The second defendant in the case was Valter Lavitola, a former L'Avanti newspaper editor, who was stated to have served as a go-between between Berlusconi and Sergio De Gregorio, a senator for Italy of Values. De Gregorio acknowledged accepting 3 million euros to switch sides in Italy’s Parliament.
Berlusconi, one of Italy's most controversial post-World-War II leaders, has been implicated in scores of legal challenges during his career, including a high-profile prostitution case, charges of abuse of office and tax fraud.
