THE POLITICAL tensions generated by the ongoing “Rubygate” sex scandal involving Italian prime minister Silvio Berlusconi showed no signs of abating yesterday. Investigating magistrates not only sent fresh documentation to parliament’s immunity committee but also summoned Milan regional councillor Nicole Minetti for a hearing next month.
Ms Minetti is one of three people who, along with Mr Berlusconi, are being investigated in relation to “underage prostitution”, which allegedly took place at parties in the prime minister’s private residence in Arcore, close to Milan. The other two people under investigation are impresario Lele Mora and journalist Emilio Fede, head of news at Mr Berlusconi’s Rete 4 TV station.
Ms Minetti is a key figure in the investigation since she is accused not only of having done a lap dance/striptease routine at the parties but also of having organised, at Mr Berlusconi’s expense, a “stable” of wannabe starlets. Furthermore, she is alleged to have been the “paymaster”, overseeing the girls’ daily living expenses at the Dimora Olgettina apartment block in Milan, where as many as 14 young women are alleged to have been housed.
Ms Minetti also figures in another crucial aspect of the “Rubygate” investigation. This relates to the night last May when Mr Berlusconi is alleged to have pressurised Milan police to release 17-year-old Moroccan runaway Karima “Ruby” El Mahroug, a regular guest at his parties, who was being held on a theft charge. Mr Berlusconi claimed that “Ruby” was a relative of Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak and should be quietly released to avoid a diplomatic incident. He further suggested that “Ruby” be handed over to the care of Nicole Minetti, who collected her from the the station in the morning of May 28th.
In another development yesterday, investigators sent a second dossier on the investigation to parliament’s immunity committee to support their request to search the offices of Giuseppe Spinelli, an accountant who handles Mr Berlusconi’s Milan expenses, allegedly including payment to various guests at the Arcore parties. Democratic Party deputy Marilena Samperi, a member of the committee, yesterday said the new documentation belied Mr Berlusconi’s claims that his “Bunga, Bunga” nights in Arcore were “normal” party nights.
Yesterday Mr Berlusconi, who continues to vigorously defend himself, was directly criticised by the Italian Catholic weekly, Famiglia Cristiana, which spoke of its “indignation” in the face of “the squalid events involving the prime minister”.