Silvio Berlusconi on Friday made a rare appearance at his trial in Milan for having sex with an underage prostitute at a hearing expected to yield sordid claims about the former premier's parties.
At the last hearing on Monday one attendee at the orgiastic celebrations allegedly hosted by the then prime minister at his villa near Milan said strippers dressed in nun costumes and football jersey performed for Berlusconi.
Imane Fadil said she was paid 2 000 euros ($2 600) in cash by Berlusconi himself the first time she went to one of his parties.
That night she said she saw two young women in nun costumes with “black tunics, white veils and crosses” stripping for Berlusconi, now 75.
Berlusconi is charged with having sex with Moroccan nightclub dancer Karima El-Mahroug when she was just 17, and then allegedly abusing his powers by getting police to release her when she was arrested in a separate incident.
El-Mahroug, better known by her stage name of “Ruby the Heart Stealer”, denies having sex with Berlusconi and he rejects all charges.
The former prime minister says he only hosted “refined dinner parties” and made cash payments simply to help out young women in need of assistance.
He has virtually never attended his own trial and his appearance at a hearing with prosecution witnesses is very unexpected.
Fadil on Monday said that one of the stripper nuns was Nicole Minetti, a former starlet who is now a regional councillor for Berlusconi's People of Freedom party and is accused of procuring prostitutes for him. - Sapa-AFP