An appeals court in the Italian city of Milan has upheld the conviction of former Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi by a lower court on charges of tax evasion, Italian media reported Wednesday.
Nevertheless, Wednesday's verdict does not mean that 76-year-old Berlusconi will begin his jail term right away. Under Italian law, all cases must pass two levels of appeal before the verdicts take effect.
Despite Wednesday's ruling, Berlusconi now has the option of appealing against the verdict at the Court of Cassation, the country's highest court. He would remain free until a final ruling is made in the case. The entire process could drag on for years.
The latest development comes after the lower court sentenced Berlusconi to four years in prison last October after convicting him of tax fraud in connection with the purchase of US film and television rights by his Mediaset television company.
Of a total of eleven people who were on trial in connection with the case, only four, including Berlusconi, were convicted. The court also barred the former premier him from holding public office for three years.
Berlusconi and other defendants were accused of purchasing broadcast rights of US movies for Mediaset through several off-shore companies under the ex-premier's control and falsely declaring those payments to avoid taxes.
Although Berlusconi has been a defendant in more than 50 trials in his political career, the criminal investigations against him on several charges, including bribery and corruption, ended in acquittal or were thrown due to expiry of statute of limitations. Incidentally, the conviction in last October was the media mogul's first.
Subsequently, Berlusconi was sentenced to one year in prison n March 2013 for leaking a wiretap conversation in a family publication. The case was linked to an attempted takeover of a bank by an insurance company.
In addition, the former premier is still on trial for allegedly paying a teenage Moroccan nightclub dancer for sex and abusing his power to conceal the liaison by getting her freed from police custody in 2011. A verdict in that case is expected soon.
The former premier has consistently denied any wrongdoings in any of the cases brought against him, insisting that the trials are part of a politically-motivated witch hunt initiated by biased left-wing magistrates in Milan.
Notably, Berlusconi's right-wing People of Freedom party (PDL) is currently an influential member of the new "grand coalition" government headed by moderate leftist Prime Minister Enrico Letta, and has the power to bring down the government if it desires.
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