Former Italian finance minister has been sentenced to nine and a half years in prison for his involvement in the exchange of health sector bribes

A former Italian finance minister has been sentenced to nine and a half years in prison for his involvement in the exchange of health sector bribes.

Ottoviano Del Turco was convicted by a court in the city Pescara on Monday in connection with a major 15-million-euro (USD 19-million) fraud in the financing of the public health system.

In addition to the jail term, he was ordered to pay more than 3 million euros in damages and given a lifetime ban on holding public office.

During the past five years, Del Turco has been under house arrest after a businessman told prosecutors that he had bribed Del Turco with over six million euros (USD 8 million).

The revelation forced him to resign as governor of the central region of Abruzzo after ruling for three years.

The court also issued guilty rulings for eight other defendants related to the case, including Vincenzo Maria Angelini, the man who confessed to bribing Del Turco. He was sentenced to three years and six months in jail.

Prior to being governor, Del Turco was a member of the European Parliament in 2004.

He was also the country’s finance minister from 2000 to 2001 in the cabinet led by then Prime Minister Giuliano Amoto.

Italy has been hit by several corruption scandals involving public officials.

One of them is former conservative premier Silvio Berlusconi, who has been criminally charged several times.

Berlusconi risks receiving his first guilty sentence later this month, when Italy’s top appeals court is to hear a tax fraud case against him.