Naples - Media mogul Silvio Berlusconi's ex-girlfriend Federica Gagliardi, who was arrested at Rome’s Leonardo da Vinci Airport with 24 kg of cocaine, has been sentenced to 3 years and 6 months imprisonment, judicial sources said.

The Italian woman known as the "Lady in White," who appeared at Berlusconi’s side at a G8 summit, goes to jail on charges of criminal association aimed at international trafficking. The final judgment  is however much smaller than the 10 years requested by the prosecutor Giovanni Conzo.

Gagliardi was arrested on March 14, 2013 right after she returned from Caracas. When she has landed at Fiumicino airport, she was carrying two hand luggage with 24 kg of cocaine.

According to the statements, after the short period of fame alongside Berlusconi, Galiardi accepted an offer from cocaine smugglers to go to Venezuela and bring drugs with her, which were supposed to be sold to the Naples Camorra mafia. One of the customs officials in Rome, who was paid to escort the White Lady pulled out before the whole operation. Nevertheless Galiardi was so determined to complete the operation that she decided to smuggle the drugs into the country anyway.

After Galiardi was caught, she told investigators that Italian officials were so impressed with her that they would let her pass without checking.

The same week, police arrested over 20 other members of the smuggling gang, including the customs official and the airport workers, who were supposed to pick up the drugs. After the trial in the Court of Naples, they were convicted, with sentences from three to 20 years of imprisonment.

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