Deals between the Sicilian Mafia and
late three-time premier and media mogul Silvio Berlusconi that
were allegedly hushed up by Mafia convict, former Berlusconi
right hand man and ex Senator Marcello Dell'Utri have never been
proven, Palermo jhudges said Thursday in rejecting a request to
confiscate millions of euro in assets from the ex-Senator and
media exec, the brains behind Berlusconi's political creature
Forza Italia (FI).
This thesis of deals "both in the political and criminal fields
may sound extremely suggestive" but no evidence of such deals
has ever been proven, they said.
Separately Thursday, a Florence court ordered the confiscation
of 10.8 billion euros in assets from Palermo born Dell'Utri, 82,
who is serving time for mafia association and other crimes, and
from his wife.
Judges said there was evidence Dell'Utri had got 900,000 euros
from the late premier between 2021 and 2023.
Berlusconi, who once employed a Mafia boss as minder against the
kidnapping of his children, died last June aged 86 having
dominated Italian business and political life for over 30 years.
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