Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SATURDAY, July 30, 1994 TAG: 9408010043
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL PAGE: A-5 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE:
DATELINE: LENGTH: Short
ROME - Italy's sweeping corruption scandal claimed its highest-ranking figure Friday when former Premier Bettino Craxi was convicted of taking kickbacks from a bank and sentenced to 81/2 years in prison.
Craxi, however, denounced the conviction from self-imposed exile at his villa in Tunisia, saying it was ``preordained'' by his political enemies.
Premier Silvio Berlusconi, Craxi's close friend and confidant, tried to shore up his own political credibility by promising to place his media and retail empire into a blind trust.
- Associated Press
by CNB