The photographs that confirmed Silvio Berlusconi had moved on from his partner of 12 years with a 30-year-old MP have emerged.
Rumours of friendship between the former Italian PM, 83, and Marta Fascina surfaced earlier this year when his long-term girlfriend Francesca Pascale admitted Fascina was spending time at his villa in Milan.
The closeness was quickly dismissed as business, with the MP seeking the advice from the statesmen of the Forza Italia party and holding political discussions.
But that pretense was blown out of the water when Ms Fascina was then photographed leaving a luxury Swiss resort with Berlusconi.
The photographs that confirmed Silvio Berlusconi had moved on from his partner of 12 years with 30-year-old MP Marta Fascina have emerged (Pictured leaving a resort in Switzerland)
In photographs which have recently emerged, the pair were seen walking a Maltese dog called Dudu who belongs to Ms Pascale – whose 12-year relationship with Berlusconi was confirmed to have come to an end on Wednesday.
The new images also picture Ms Fascina carrying one of two dogs she was walking as she and Berlusconi approach a helicopter in Switzerland.
‘It amuses me to see a member of parliament take my dog for a walk. But that’s fine by me,’ Ms Pascale said at the time.
Ms Fascina, who reportedly has the billionaire’s initials tattooed on her body, has long championed the political party set up by Berlusconi in the 90s and has known him since her days working for AC Milan football club.
The pair were seen walking a Maltese dog called Dudu who belongs to Francesca Pascale, whose 12-year relationship with Berlusconi (pictured) was confirmed to have come to an end
The photographs show Ms Fascina carrying one of two dogs she was walking (left) as she and Berlusconi approach a helicopter (right) in Switzerland
She is said to have won the 83-year-old’s affections by sending a series of letters that entranced him so much that he dumped his long term girlfriend after 12 years.
A glamorous blonde, Fascina’s Instagram page boasts pictures of the young MP smartly dressed in parliament and perched in a two piece skirt suit in a military helicopter, as well as a more sultry image of her posing seductively in front of the camera.
Reflecting on the 53-year age gap between Fascina and Berlusconi, one political rival sniped: ‘If she is looking to make a name for herself, then she has done that. What is it that a 30-year-old woman sees in an 83-year-old man?’
As a newcomer to the volatile world of Italian politics, her career has been entwined with that of Berlusconi whose own 20 year political career ended in disgrace over ‘bunga bunga’ sex parties involving underage girls.
‘It amuses me to see a member of parliament take my dog for a walk. But that’s fine by me,’ Ms Pascale said at the time
The billionaire left Ms Pascale (pictured together) after a 12-year relationship, but the couple ‘remain friends’, his Forza Italia party said in a statement on Wednesday
Born in a coastal city on the toe of southern Italy, Fascina graduated with a degree in Literature and Philosophy from Rome’s Sapienza University and began working for AC Milan football club as a press officer.
At the time, it was owned by Berlusconi and she would have come into regular contact with him.
She became a super fan of the top Italian team – and of its owner – and it was around this time that she reportedly had the initials SB tattooed on her, according to Italian newspaper Il Messaggero.
She began her political career by writing a series of supportive articles for a newspaper backing Forza Italia, the party started by Berlusconi in 1994 when he was first elected Prime Minister.
Ms Fascina (pictured) has long championed the political party set up by Berlusconi in the 90s and has known him since her days working for AC Milan football club
Ms Pascale, who once said in an interview that she asked Berlusconi to marry her every day, appeared to have been caught off guard, saying she was ‘astonished’ by the statement
But it wasn’t until two years ago that she was elected deputy in the Campania 1 district.
So far her career has been unspectacular and unlike her apparent new boyfriend appears to be scandal free.
Colleagues describe her as a ‘simple but cute’ presence in the Italian Parliament.
She rarely votes and has not sought to make any intervention in political matters being discussed during the current parliamentary term.
The billionaire left Pascale after a 12-year relationship, but the couple ‘remain friends’, his Forza Italia party said in a statement Wednesday.
Pascale, who once said in an interview that she asked Berlusconi to marry her every day, appeared to have been caught off guard, saying she was ‘astonished’ by the statement, according to the daily Repubblica.
‘I will hold him dear forever. I wish him all the happiness in the world and hope he finds someone who will take care of him as I have,’ said the blonde
The latest scandal involving Berlusconi comes amid a growing coronavirus crisis in Italy, which has reported 3,858 cases of the virus and 148 deaths
‘I will hold him dear forever. I wish him all the happiness in the world and hope he finds someone who will take care of him as I have,’ said the blonde, who first caught Berlusconi’s eye when she founded a fan club for him.
The billionaire has dominated Italian politics for more than two decades despite sex scandals, serial gaffes and legal woes.
Berlusconi was sentenced in 2013 to seven years in jail for paying for sex with a 17-year-old starlet known as ‘Ruby the Heart-Stealer’, though that conviction was later overturned.
The former cruise ship singer is on trial for showering young women who attended his parties with cash gifts and presents to buy their silence over reportedly racy dinners, which some guests alleged descended into orgies.
The latest scandal involving Berlusconi comes amid a growing coronavirus crisis in Italy, which has reported 3,858 cases of the virus and 148 deaths.