Karima El Mahroug
 Karima El Mahroug    ( Model, Witness) | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | November 11, 1992 Fquih Ben Salah, Morocco |
| Nationality | • Moroccan • Italian |
| Interests | •  Silvio Berlusconi• 40px Bunga Bunga |
Moroccan dancer and escort who witnessed Berlusconi's Bunga-Bunga parties. | |
Karima El Mahroug, stage name Ruby Rubacuori (Heartstealer), worked as a dancer and is known in the context of the Rubygate scandal, in which the Italian president Silvio Berlusconi was accused of having a sexual relationship with her when she was seventeen years old.[1] Statements to the effect she would walk back on in 2013.[2] Berlusconi was charged with abuse of power and corruption of minors.[3]
Background
El Mahroug is the daughter of Moroccan migrants, who came to Italy when she was a teenager. She grew up in Messina, where it is said she acquired her nickname "thief of hearts".[4] She has been in and out of care since running away from home, either at 12, or 14 years old.[5] She worked as a chambermaid, belly dancer and beautician. In March 2011 she was a guest at the Vienna Opera Ball alongside Austrian socialite Richard Lugner.[6]
Rubygate
El Mahroug was accused of stealing 4,000 € from her roommate for which she was arrested in Milan in May 2010. She was released following a call from Silvio Berlusconi, who told the Milanese police that she was the granddaughter of Hosni Mubarak.[7][8] When questioned during the Rubygate investigation about this intervention, Berlusconi stated that he had acted without personal motivation, simply to help people in desperate situations. However, leaks from the investigation seem to indicate that Ruby not only accepted money and jewelry from the Italian president, but also participated in these parties that ended in sex games or "bunga bunga".[9]
"She told prosecutors in Milan that the events, which resembled orgies, involved Berlusconi and numerous young women stripping off and performing a ritual known as the "bunga bunga". Many of the women attending the parties were apparently hoping to break into show business by appearing on one of the TV channels owned by Berlusconi."[10]
The prosecution wanted to seize five million Euros from her, which they said she received as a bribe.[11]
References
- ↑ https://www.cbsnews.com/news/berlusconi-bunga-bunga-parties-described-by-woman-dubbed-ruby-heartbreaker-in-italian-trial/
- ↑ https://web.archive.org/web/20250428215338/https://www.thestar.com/news/world/nude-bathing-bunga-bunga-stories-all-nonsense-berlusconi-sex-trial-told/article_17b62bfc-5d71-5b33-8a8a-4e408330caa2.html
- ↑ https://www.lemonde.fr/en/international/article/2023/02/15/italy-s-berlusconi-acquitted-in-bunga-bunga-bribe-case_6015908_4.html
- ↑ http://www.liberation.fr/monde/2013/05/20/ruby-et-le-soleil-du-nord_904244
- ↑ https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-12473645
- ↑ https://web.de/magazine/panorama/berlusconi-prozess-bunga-bunga-girl-ruby-rubacuori-30501310 saved at Archive.org
- ↑ The Ottawa Citizen, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, 16 Feb 2011, Wed, page 7
- ↑ https://web.archive.org/web/20140910101348/http://www.zeit.de/2011/05/Italien-Berlusconi
- ↑ https://www.huffpost.com/entry/berlusconi-sex-scandal_n_845000
- ↑ https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-65878077
- ↑ https://www.ansa.it/english/news/2022/10/05/woman-at-centre-of-bunga-bunga-case-laments-nightmare_54b0a545-1b39-470b-920d-041a35bcaed3.html
