This is happening for the first time in the history of the Catholic Church
A cardinal was sentenced to prison by a Vatican court. This is happening for the first time in the history of the Catholic Church, and the sentence was pronounced in a landmark case for a financial scandal involving questionable transactions for millions of euros, DPA reported.
A Vatican court has sentenced Italian Cardinal Angelo Beccu to five years and six months in prison for his role in a willful embezzlement scandal. Never before has a cardinal of the Roman Curia been sentenced to prison by a Vatican court. Bechu’s lawyers said they would appeal the verdict.
Vatican prosecutor Alessandro Didi initially asked for seven years and three months in prison for Bechu, 75, and a heavy fine. Nine other people are accused along with him.
The process is one of the most noisy in the history of the Vatican. For the first time, a high-ranking cardinal stands on the dock.
The case, which had been going on for more than five years, had as its main subject the purchase of luxury properties in the London district of Chelsea by the Vatican Secretariat of State, where Bechu held an important position for several years.
The accusation against him was that the deal caused significant financial damage to the Vatican, since more money was invested in its conclusion than expected. This has cost the Vatican hundreds of millions.
Meanwhile, along with the investigation into the dubious multi-million euro deal in London, dubious relationships and machinations in the Vatican itself were also revealed.
The Vatican Prosecutor’s Office accused the Italian cleric and nine other people of extortion, money laundering, fraud, corruption, misappropriation of funds and abuse of office.
The case caused significant damage to the image of the world’s smallest country.
After the accusations were brought against him, Bechu, who is originally from Sardinia, lost his rights as a cardinal and thus, for example, could not participate in the election of a new pope, or the so-called conclave.
However, Bechu, who was once considered a possible candidate for the papacy, still has the right to be called a cardinal.
When the scandal surrounding him broke out, Pope Francis removed him from his position as prefect of the Congregation for Canonization. Pope Francis and the Vatican administration learned a lesson from the property scandal. The pontiff restructured the responsibilities of the Curia, as the Vatican government is known.
It took away the right of the powerful Secretariat of State to dispose of assets and other powers of the Holy See. It is now the responsibility of the Vatican property administration, known as the Administration for the Property of the Apostolic See, and the Vatican Bank, known as the Institute for Religious Activity
Photo by Aliona & Pasha: https://www.pexels.com/photo/aerial-view-of-vatican-city-3892129/
