Berlusconi should get five-year jail sentence, prosecutor says

Feb 15, 2012, 11:11 GMT

Rome - A prosecutor in Italy on Wednesday requested a five-year prison sentence for Silvio Berlusconi in a trial in which the former prime minister is charged with bribing a British tax lawyer.

'There is certainty, beyond any reasonable doubt, of the defendant's guilt,' Prosecutor Fabio De Pasquale, told a Milan court.

The media magnate-turned politician is accused of paying David Mills, 600,000 dollars to provide false evidence about his business activities in two corruption trials dating back to the 1990s.

Berlusconi, who did not attend the court hearing, denies any wrongdoing.

Following a separate trial, Mills was convicted in absentia in February 2009 of receiving the bribe from Berlusconi. He was later acquitted by Italy's top appeals court.

Mills also denies any wrongdoing.

The trial is one of several scandals that have mired Berlusconi's political career. In a separate trial, he is accused of paying an underage prostitute for sex and of abusing his position to cover up the liaison.

Berlusconi resigned as premier on November 12.

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