This article is more than 6 years old

This article is more than 6 years old

An Italian appeals court has acquitted the former prime minister Silvio Berlusconi in a prostitution case, reversing a lower court conviction that had carried a seven-year prison sentence and a lifetime ban on holding political office.

The prosecution alleged that Berlusconi had paid for sex with a Moroccan underage prostitute, Karima el-Mahroug, better known as Ruby, and then used his influence to cover it up.

He denied the charges, and both he and Mahroug, who was 17 when she frequented Berlusconi's villa, denied ever having had sex.

The acquittal was announced just as Berlusconi, 77, was leaving a facility for Alzheimer's patients where he is performing community service for a separate conviction on a tax fraud charge. That is the only case finalised against Berlusconi, who has faced dozens of trials, mostly for his business dealings. The media mogul waved from his car as he was driven away.

Berlusconi's defence lawyer, Franco Coppi, said the decision "goes beyond the rosiest predictions", adding that he would have been satisfied with an acquittal for lack of evidence. But the court went further, saying that no crimes had been committed.

While the court has 90 days to issue its reasoning, Coppi said the decision to acquit Berlusconi of paying an underage prostitute for sex could have been due to his testimony that he believed Mahroug was over 18.

The case may not end there, however. Prosecutors can challenge Friday's acquittal in Italy's highest criminal court, the court of cassation.

Berlusconi is also on trial in Naples accused of political corruption, and under investigation in Milan accused of witness-tampering in the prostitution trial and in another related case involving three aides who were convicted of procuring prostitutes for his parties.

Berlusconi remains influential on the Italian political scene as head of his Forza Italia party, despite a ban on holding political office for two years following the tax fraud conviction, which led the Senate to remove his seat.

The verdict was greeted with delight by political allies. One of Berlusconi's staunchest supporters, the lawmaker Renato Brunetta, wrote "Berlusconi innocent!!!" on Twitter.