Carige ex-president Berneschi gets 8 yrs 2 mths

(ANSA) - Genoa, November 17 - A court on Wednesday handed down a sentence of eight years and two months in prison for the former president of medium-sized Genoa-based Carige bank, Giovanni Berneschi.
    "They might as well have shot me," commented Berneschi after the verdict was read out.
    Berneschi was arrested in the case in May 2014. He and six others, who got shorter sentences, were are on trial on charges of criminal association for purposes of fraud and money-laundering to the detriment of the Genoa-based lender's insurance branch, Carige Vita Nuova. The defendants were found guilty of using the insurer to purchase real estate and company shares from crooked businessmen at inflated prices, and reinvesting the capital gains abroad.