Marcello Dell'Utri, founder of Italy's ruling party, is vowing to appeal his conviction on charges of associating with organized crime.
Dell'Utri, a senator and co-founder with Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi of the Go Italy party, was found guilty Saturday and sentenced to nine years in prison plus a lifetime ban on politics, the BBC reported.
Prosecutors argued that Dell'Utri was a go-between for the Mafia and Italy's business and political elites and had bribed judges in the 1980s to favor his business interests. The prosecutors produced testimony against Dell'Utri from more than 40 former Mafia members during the seven-year trial.
He will not have to serve his sentence until, and only if, two courts of appeal sustain the convictions, a process that is expected to take years.
© Copyright 2004 by United Press International
