July 27, 2021 Share
A trial opened in Vatican City on Tuesday for 10 defendants, including a once-powerful cardinal, in a case based on a sprawling investigation of the allegedly criminal management of the Holy See’s portfolio of assets, including donations by countless Catholics.
Among the defendants is Italian Cardinal Angelo Becciu, a longtime Vatican diplomat. After a web of scandals started unraveling during a two-year probe, Pope Francis dismissed Becciu last year as chief of the church’s saint-making office. Not waiting for the verdict of a Vatican court, Francis also removed his rights as a cardinal.
Less than three months ago, it would have been impossible for a cardinal to be in the dock in Vatican City State, which has its own justice system and even a jail. But Francis had a Vatican law changed so that Vatican-based cardinals and bishops can be prosecuted and judged by the Holy See’s lay criminal tribunal as long as the pontiff signs off on that. Previo
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Extraordinary Vatican trial gets underway for cardinal, 9 others in money scandals
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