Heirs stop payments to Berlusconi's love affairs
Former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi generously supported young women who took part in his legendary "bunga bunga" parties for years - now Berlusconi's heirs have cut them off, according to a newspaper report. For more than ten years, 20 young women had each received 2,500 euros a month from the media czar and politician. Several of them lived in apartments that belonged to the former head of government's real estate empire.
Berlusconi had justified the women's lavish allowance with the reputational damage they had suffered as a result of being summoned in various court cases relating to the notorious "bunga bunga" parties in Berlusconi's villas. However, as the "Corriere della Sera" reported, Berlusconi's family decided to stop the monthly payments after his death at the age of 86 in June. In addition, the disgraced women were asked to move out of Berlusconi's apartments.
Berlusconi was the subject of several lawsuits over the years in connection with the boozy parties in his villas. He was accused of bribing the women attending the parties to tell the truth about the circumstances of their participation. He was finally acquitted in February.
Arrest triggers "Ruby affair"
At the center of the affair was the then 17-year-old nightclub dancer Karima el-Mahroug, aka Ruby Rubacuore (Ruby Heartbreaker), with whom Berlusconi is said to have had sex for money from 2010. The "Ruby affair" first came to the attention of the public when el-Mahroug was arrested by the Italian police in 2010 for theft.
Berlusconi, who was head of government at the time, then called the police station and claimed that el-Mahroug was the niece of the then Egyptian President Husni Mubarak and therefore had to be released. El-Mahroug later reported in a recorded conversation about regular orgies in Berlusconi's villa. She then rowed back and claimed that she had only made it all up.
Courts had tried unsuccessfully to prove that Berlusconi had known that el-Mahroug was underage and had paid millions in hush money to a number of witnesses to cover up the incidents at Berlusconi's house.
Despite Berlusconi's justification for financially supporting women involved in his infamous "bunga bunga" parties due to their court cases, internationally, his heirs decided to end these payments following his death at 86. Notably, these women were also asked to vacate the apartments they occupied within Berlusconi's real estate empire.
The "Bunga Bunga" parties in Berlusconi's villas, particularly his involvement with the 17-year-old dancer Karima el-Mahroug, or Ruby Rubacuore, gained significant international attention, originating the "Ruby affair."
Source: www.ntv.de
