Berlusconi ordered to stand trial for bribery

An Italian judge has ordered Silvio Berlusconi to stand trial for allegedly bribing a senator to join his party’s ranks, in the latest legal woe for the former prime minister.

Berlusconi was formally charged along with his former associate, Valter Lavitola, who is accused of acting as an intermediary in the €3m bribe, lawyers said.

The senator himself, Sergio De Gregorio, helped investigators and was granted a 20-month sentence under a plea bargain by the hearing in Naples.