New probe opened in Berlusconi sex case

ROME, March 14 (UPI) -- Italy is investigating a reported attempt to alter the birth date of a young woman linked to Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, prosecutors said Monday.

The investigation follows a newspaper report last week that two "emissaries" acting for the prime minister visited the Moroccan hometown of belly dancer Karima el-Mahroug, known as Ruby Heartstealer, Feb. 7 to try to bribe an official to move her date of birth back two years, ANSA reported.

The forgery would have indicated she was 19, not 17, between February and May of last year, when prosecutors say she had sex with Berlusconi, then 73.

Paying for sex is a crime in Italy only if the prostitute is under 18. The woman denies being a prostitute and both she and Berlusconi say they never had sex and the money he gave her was a gift.

She said she was 24.

The investigation into possible attempted bribery was opened at the request of Berlusconi's lawyer Niccolo' Ghedini, who said the premier could be "seriously damaged" by the report.

"Anyone who knows Moroccan law knows that falsifying a certificate at a town council registry would be completely useless and laughable since copies are kept by several government authorities," his motion said.