Former Premier Guilty of Bribery

A jury convicted media baron Silvio Berlusconi, the opposition leader and former prime minister, of bribing tax inspectors to obtain favorable audits of his Fininvest media and retail holding company. He was sentenced to two years and nine months in prison. Although he is protected from going to jail by his immunity as a politician and a long appeals process, the verdict deals a fresh blow to his credibility. The Milan court verdict ended a two-year trial and set off an avalanche of criticism from the center-right opposition, led by Berlusconi, that the decision was politically motivated.