Italy: Berlusconi bribe case

David Mills, a British corporate lawyer has been found guilty of accepting bribes from Prime Minister Berlusconi in return for giving false evidence in two court cases in 1997 and 1998.

The article on BBC.com states that Mills, an expert witness in tax affairs, accepted $600,000 (U.S. dollars) to not mention Berlusconi's offshore companies in the court case so that Berlusconi could avoid paying tax. This was believed to have helped clear Berlusconi in the case.

Mills has been sentenced to four years and six months of prison, but has said he will appeal the sentencing. He will most likely avoid going to prison because an appeal could take up to 3 years, forcing the prosecution to run into problems with Italy's statute of limitations.

Berlusconi will also avoid prison time as his administration passed an immunity to prosecution law (a "get-out-of-jail-free card") last year. He cannot be prosecuted while in office, but the charges are suspended and there is a possibilty of prosecuting him once his term is over. There is also a movement to get rid of the new immunity laws which could lead to problems for Berlusconi.

-Jessica Perry
country: Italy