Berlusconi's 'harem of 14 beautiful women outside Milan'

The women lived rent-free in the estate and were given large sums of cash by the billionaire Italian politician in return for sex, 'The Independent' reported, citing leaks from prosecutors in Milan.

Milano Due was one of the first gated housing estates in Italy, a sprawling complex of apartments set in landscaped gardens, built by Berlusconi himself in the 1970s when he was a thrusting young property developer.

With underground parking, a supermarket, bars and other facilities, it is one of the most fashionable addresses in the Milan hinterland. When Berlusconi moved into television he located the headquarters of Mediaset, his TV company, here.

But in his declining years, the estate has also become the headquarters of his harem, Italian daily 'Corriere della Sera' said, in yet another blow to the battered image of the Prime Minister as he prepares to defend himself against what could be the gravest crisis of his political career. The existence of the flats was revealed by Karima El Mahroug, a teenage belly-dancer from Morocco who trades under the name of Ruby Rubacuori, "Ruby heart-stealer".

Prosecutors in Milan are demanding that he be put on trial immediately for having sex with an underage prostitute.

A court recently lifted partially Berlusconi's immunity from prosecution for trial on a charge of having sex with the dancer when she was 17. Sex with a prostitute under 18 is punishable by upto three years in jail in Italy.