Eight charged with procuring prostitutes for Berlusconi

ROME, Sept. 16 (UPI) -- At least 30 women, many of them prostitutes, were recruited to attend parties thrown by Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, investigators said.

Eight people have been charged on claims they supplied prostitutes for the prime minister, the BBC reported. Berlusconi has not been charged.

The allegations were revealed as Berlusconi's approval rating tumbled to a new low, with only 24 percent of Italians saying they trusted him "a lot" or "quite a lot," The Daily Telegraph reported Friday.

Prosecutors said their two-year investigation into the allegations revealed that at least 30 women, some from South America and Eastern Europe, were invited to Berlusconi's private parties and many "prostituted themselves" with the prime minister in return for cash or other gifts.

The investigation indicated Italian actress Manuela Arcuri allegedly was promised an opportunity to emcee the annual San Remo musical festival in exchange for sleeping with Berlusconi but refused the offer.

Berlusconi said events at his private home were dinner parties, not sex parties, the British broadcaster reported.

"They were nothing but friendly gatherings," Berlusconi's lawyers said in a statement.

A poll commissioned by Italy's Repubblica newspaper indicated the number of Italians who have "little" or "no" trust in Berlusconi rose from 60 percent to 64 percent, ANSA reported. His approval rating plunged to 24 percent from a high of 62 percent shortly after his 2008 re-election.

Results indicate approval for his government was slumping as well, dropping 4 percentage points to 19 percent, another low.

Results of the investigation dogged Berlusconi this week as he tried to deal with Italy's massive debt and economic stagnation.

The Daily Telegraph reported Berlusconi made derogatory remarks about German Chancellor Angela Merkel's weight during a telephone conversation with a newspaper editor in July. The alleged insult, captured in a conversation taped by prosecutors, was condemned by five Italian lawmakers, saying they thought it was "intolerable" for a political leader to make vulgar jokes about the physical appearance of any woman.

Also Thursday, the Telegraph reported Berlusconi, already on trial for corruption, abuse of office and paying for sex with an underage prostitute, could face another trial. A Milan judge said Berlusconi should face criminal charges for his alleged involvement in receiving illegally obtained wiretaps on the acquisition of an Italian bank that were published by a newspaper owned by his brother, Paolo Berlusconi.