Vatican Cardinal Convicted of Embezzlement

A Vatican tribunal on Saturday convicted a cardinal of embezzlement and sentenced him to 5 ½ years in prison in one of several verdicts handed down in a complicated financial trial that aired the city state's dirty laundry and tested its justice system.

Cardinal Angelo Becciu, the first cardinal ever prosecuted by the Vatican criminal court, was absolved of several other charges and nine other defendants received a combination of guilty verdicts and acquittals among the nearly 50 charges brought against them during a 2 ½ year trial.

Becciu's lawyer, Fabio Viglione, said he respected the sentence but would appeal.

Prosecutor Alessandro Diddi said the outcome "showed we were correct."

The trial focused on the Vatican secretariat of state's 350 million euro investment in developing a former Harrod's warehouse into luxury apartments. Prosecutors alleged Vatican monsignors and brokers fleeced the Holy See of tens of millions of euros in fees and commissions and then extorted the Holy See for 15 million euros to cede control of the building.

Prosecution in Vatican's Criminal Court

Becciu, the first-ever cardinal to be prosecuted in the Vatican's criminal court, was accused of embezzlement-related charges in two tangents of the London deal and faced up to seven years in prison.

In a shocking turn of events, a former Vatican official has been convicted of embezzlement and misuse of funds. The trial, which raised concerns about the rule of law in the city state, highlighted the absolute power of Pope Francis as the supreme authority in the Vatican.

The convicted official, whose name has not been disclosed, was found guilty of embezzling 200 million euros from a fund that invested in London property. Additionally, he was convicted of donating 125,000 euros of Vatican money to a charity run by his brother in Sardinia. Furthermore, he used Vatican funds to pay an intelligence analyst who was also convicted of misusing the money.

The defense attorneys praised Judge Giuseppe Pignatone's fairness during the trial, but criticized the Vatican's outdated procedural norms, which allowed prosecutors to withhold evidence and conduct their investigation without hindrance.

The prosecutors had demanded prison sentences ranging from three to 13 years, as well as damages of over 400 million euros to compensate for the alleged losses suffered by the Holy See. However, many of the suspects were acquitted of numerous charges. The tribunal ordered the confiscation of 166 million euros from the convicted individuals and the payment of civil damages amounting to 200 million euros to Vatican offices. Only one defendant, Monsignor Mauro Carlino, was acquitted entirely.

The trial was initially seen as a sign of financial reforms and willingness to crack down on alleged financial misdeeds in the Vatican. But it had something of a reputational boomerang for the Holy See, with revelations of vendettas, espionage and even ransom payments to Islamic militants.

The secretariat of state, for example, sought damages to fund a marketing campaign to try to repair the reputational harm it says it incurred. Even the Vatican communications department said the trial itself had been a "stress test" for the legal system.

London property and charity payments

Much of the London case rested on the passage of the property from one London broker to another in late 2018. Prosecutors allege the second broker, Gianluigi Torzi, hoodwinked the Vatican by maneuvering to secure full control of the building that he relinquished only when the Vatican paid him off 15 million euros.

For Vatican prosecutors, that amounted to extortion. For the defense - and a British judge who rejected Vatican requests to seize Torzi's assets - it was a negotiated exit from a legally binding contract.

In the end, the tribunal convicted Torzi of several charges, including extortion, and sentenced him to six years in prison.

It wasn't clear where the suspects would serve their time. The Vatican has a jail, but Torzi's whereabouts weren't immediately known.

The original London investigation spawned two other tangents that involved the star defendant, Becciu, once one of Francis' top advisers and himself considered a papal contender.

Prosecutors Accuse Becciu of Embezzlement

Former Vatican official, Cardinal Angelo Becciu, has been accused by prosecutors of embezzlement. It is alleged that Becciu sent 125,000 euros in Vatican money to a Sardinian charity run by his brother. Becciu, however, argues that the money was requested by the local bishop to build a bakery for at-risk youths and that the funds remained in the diocesan coffers.

The tribunal acknowledged the charitable intentions behind the donation, but still convicted Becciu of embezzlement due to his brother's involvement.

In addition to the embezzlement charges, Becciu is also accused of paying a Sardinian woman named Cecilia Marogna for her intelligence services. Prosecutors have traced approximately 575,000 euros in wire transfers from the Vatican to a Slovenian front company owned by Marogna. It is alleged that she used the money to purchase luxury goods and fund vacations.

Becciu claims that he believed the money was being used to pay a British security firm in order to negotiate the release of Gloria Narvaez, a Colombian nun who was taken hostage by Islamic militants in Mali in 2017. He further states that Pope Francis authorized up to 1 million euros for the purpose of liberating the nun, which raises concerns about the Vatican's willingness to make ransom payments to al-Qaida-linked militants.

In the trial, both Becciu and Marogna were found guilty. Marogna has been sentenced to three years and 9 months in prison.