ITALIAN BRIBERY TRIAL GETS THIRD DELAY
MILAN — The bribery trial involving Italy’s top designers, scheduled to start on Tuesday, will be postponed yet again, according to Milan magistrate Paolo Ielo, a member of the anti-corruption pool of judges that has taken over the case from magistrate Piercamillo Davigo.
Ielo said the trial will be postponed, probably to sometime in May, at a hearing Tuesday morning. He said the reason for the postponement was the crowded court docket. This is the third time the trial, which was originally scheduled for September, has been postponed.
As reported, Giorgio Armani, Santo Versace, Krizia’s Mariuccia Mandelli, Gianfranco Ferre and Girolamo Etro have been charged with paying bribes to Italian tax authorities in exchange for lenient audits. The designers have all claimed they were forced to pay by corrupt officials who threatened to disrupt their business affairs if they didn’t cooperate.