Ousted Rome Mayor Claims Someone Forged His Dinner Receipts

The mayor of Rome was forced to resign from office earlier this month amid accusations that he misappropriated public funds to pay for private social dinners at restaurants, but he and his lawyers maintain that the receipts used to implicate him were obvious forgeries.

According to The Local, Rome's outgoing mayor Ignazio Marino told a Special Prosecutor in court that he was completely innocent and had not used public funds to pay for social restaurant visits. While the prosecution had receipts that allegedly showed Marino's signature on the bills, Marino and his lawyers say those receipts were forged.

"The mayor has declared that all of the signatures on the contested receipts are not authentic, a fact which can be seen with the naked eye," said Marino's lawyer, Enzo Musco.

Marino also claims to have been out of town on several of the days when he allegedly hosted social dinners using public funds. His lawyers say that proves him innocent of any wrongdoing, but Marino was still forced to resign on October 12 because of the scandal.

According to The Local, despite resigning, Marino gets to remain in office until November 2, at which point he will officially relinquish his mayoral duties.