Italian prosecutors have a filed a request for Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi to be brought to trial immediately.
Mr Berlusconi, 74, faces charges of paying for sex with an underage girl and improperly pressuring police to release the girl from custody.
A judge must now decide whether to accept the prosecutors' request and indict the Prime Minister.
Mr Berlusconi has labelled the request "disgusting".
If convicted, he could face up to 15 years in jail.
The case adds to the pressure on Mr Berlusconi, whose centre-right Government is hanging onto power by a thread.
