The Italian Senate on Wednesday approved the resignation of a senator in Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi's conservative People of Freedom party suspected of mafia links, DPA reported.
Senators voted 259-16 to accept the resignation of Nicola Di Girolamo, one of 56 prominent Italians sought by police in connection with a massive international money laundering scam.
An arrest warrant was issued last week against the senator, who is suspected of having had ties with mafia bosses who allegedly helped him win votes with money laundered from abroad.
Di Girolamo, who tendered his resignation on Tuesday, has denied any wrongdoing.
Some of those involved in the scam - allegedly involving dummy companies and wide-scale value added tax fraud - were taken into custody abroad, including the United States, Britain and Luxembourg.
The sum in question is estimated to be around 2.4 billion euros (3.2 billion dollars).
Di Girolamo's resignation comes three weeks before Berlusconi's party faces key regional elections.
The prime minister himself has been dogged by allegations of corruption.
Last week, an appeals court overturned a prison sentence against a Berlusconi lawyer on grounds the statute of limitations expired in relation to the corruption offence for which he had been convicted.