<p>Berlusconi, who has been embroiled in several sex scandals, was now accused of abusing his office by telephoning a Milan police station and putting officers under pressure to release Karima El Mahroug, known by her stage name as Ruby the Heart Stealer, from arrest on a charge of theft.<br /><br />The claims by prosecutors came at the resumption of the trial in which he is accused of paying the young woman for sex, the Daily Mail reported.<br /><br />According to the report, the 74-year-old prime minister allegedly sent two associates to collect the 17-year-old El Mahroug from the police station. The associates were Nicole Minetti, an Anglo-Italian showgirl who his party elevated into politics, and Michelle Conceicao, a Brazilian starlet who was known to the prime minister.<br /><br />“It was a military attack, an encirclement, and it was all directed towards the police station,” the lead prosecutor in the case Ilda Boccassini was quoted as saying.</p>
<p>Berlusconi, who has been embroiled in several sex scandals, was now accused of abusing his office by telephoning a Milan police station and putting officers under pressure to release Karima El Mahroug, known by her stage name as Ruby the Heart Stealer, from arrest on a charge of theft.<br /><br />The claims by prosecutors came at the resumption of the trial in which he is accused of paying the young woman for sex, the Daily Mail reported.<br /><br />According to the report, the 74-year-old prime minister allegedly sent two associates to collect the 17-year-old El Mahroug from the police station. The associates were Nicole Minetti, an Anglo-Italian showgirl who his party elevated into politics, and Michelle Conceicao, a Brazilian starlet who was known to the prime minister.<br /><br />“It was a military attack, an encirclement, and it was all directed towards the police station,” the lead prosecutor in the case Ilda Boccassini was quoted as saying.</p>