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A panel of judges Monday sentenced former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi to seven years in prison for abusing power and having sex with an underage prostitute, CNN reported. 

Judges also barred the flamboyant former prime minister from holding public office.

The high-profile case centered on an exotic dancer nicknamed "Ruby the heart-stealer."

Berlusconi's attorney told reporters he plans to appeal the conviction. He said he was not surprised by the verdict, because the former prime minister had not gotten a fair trial.

"What happened today is very serious," defense attorney Nicolo Ghedini said, arguing that judges had not appropriately considered court proceedings.

Prosecutors had argued that Berlusconi had sex 13 times with underage dancer Karima el Mahroug and abused his position when he intervened in May 2010 to get her released from jail, where she was being held on charges of theft.

Berlusconi, 76, has denied the charges and others against him.

"It is absurd to suggest I have paid for a rapport with a woman. It is something I have never done, not even once in my life. It is something I find degrading to my dignity," he has said.