Berlusconi acquitted in trial tied to ‘bunga bunga’ parties

By COLLEEN BARRY
Associated Press

MILAN (AP) — Former Italian Premier Silvio Berlusconi has been found not guilty of witness tampering in a trial related to sexually charged “bunga bunga” parties he held at his villa near Milan while he was in office. The six-year-old trial that ended Wednesday is the third and likely final one in a scandal that made headlines around the world. Berlusconi, as a sitting premier, faced charges of having paid for sex with an under-age teen — and was eventually acuitted. In the third trial, Berlusconi was accused of paying witnesses to lie in earlier trials. Prosecutors had sought six years in prison for him along with 10 million euros in damages.