She was at the very center of the sex scandal, followed by the political fall of Silvio Berlusconi. But now, Ruby’s “Heartbreaker” lifestyle can be the envy of many movie stars and pop divas.
Moroccan Karima El Mahroug (stage name - Ruby) danced erotic dances in a nightclub, and now litter money, travel the world, develop a luxury resort in Mexico and invest in real estate in the Middle East. Ruby obviously enjoys life and youth, while Senor Berlusconi appeals against a seven-year sentence he received last year for allegedly having sex with a beautiful dancer.
Before becoming famous due to the scandalous process (which they nicknamed the “Ruby case”), the girl was an ordinary teenage refugee trying to survive on the streets of Milan, where, according to city judges, she was engaged in prostitution. Now at 21, Ruby is posting photos on her Facebook page where she sunbathes on the Playa del Carmen beach in Mexico City or drinks champagne in Dubai.
Such abundant expenses made many wonder how much money Berlusconi actually gave her while she was one of the 30 dancers and models who participated in his famous "bunga bunga" parties in a mansion in Arcora near Milan. Earlier, the former prime minister mentioned that he gave the girl several tens of thousands of euros to provide an opportunity to open his own SPA-salon and not engage in prostitution anymore. At the same time, Berlusconi denied that he had given her these funds in exchange for favorable testimony in court. However, expensive hobbies and long journeys of the former dancer indicate that she probably received a much larger amount.
In an intercepted telephone conversation that the Milan prosecutor made public in court, Ruby boasted to a friend that she had received 5 million euros from a billionaire businessman, but she subsequently claimed to be joking. Nevertheless, according to La Repubblica newspaper, four months later, the girl flew to Dubai and opened a bank account there for 2 million euros, and also expressed interest in buying three apartments in the Emirates. The newspaper also provided a copy of the form filled in when opening the account, in which Ruby prescribed her profession as a "dancer".
The fact is that, according to bank employees: "In Dubai, you can bring to the bank up to 10 million euros, and no one will ask who you are.".
Growing up in a dusty working town in eastern Sicily in a family of immigrants, the former dancer now lives in Mexico City for most of the year with her husband, the owner of a nightclub, Luca Risso, and their two-year-old daughter, Sofia. They are developing a seaside resort, called the "House of Sofia" ("Casa Sofia").
And Senor Berlusconi was sentenced last June to seven years in prison on charges of abuse of power and payment for sex with Karima el Marug, who at that time was only 17 years old. After all, the use of paid sex services for girls under 18 in Italy is prohibited by law. At the moment, Berlusconi remains at large, as he is waiting for a decision to appeal the verdict in court.