Cautious reactions after historic prison sentence against cardinal in Vatican

On Saturday he became the first cardinal in history to be criminally convicted by a papal court. Pope Francis has let the Vatican justice system “go its normal way,” commented the editor-in-chief of the Vatican media platform “Vatican News,” Andrea Tornielli, according to Kathpress.

The Sardinian has to go to prison for five and a half years because he embezzled Vatican funds on a large scale and, in one case, together with an acquaintance, he organized a serious fraud to the detriment of the Holy See. A comprehensive verdict with more details on the reconstruction of the crimes committed is not expected for a few weeks.

The case of Beccius’s loss-making real estate investment in London, in particular, caused a stir internationally, in which the Vatican is said to have been defrauded of up to 200 million euros. The court viewed this as embezzlement, as did the transfer of Vatican funds to a charity organization run by the cardinal’s brother.

The lawyers of the convicted cardinal and the Italian brokers, middlemen and financial advisors who were also sentenced to long prison terms announced an appeal immediately after the verdict was announced. The Vatican prosecutor Alessandro Diddi expressed satisfaction after the verdict; He had sometimes called for significantly higher prison sentences.

The three lawyers who represented the Holy See as the injured party and co-plaintiff were also satisfied. In a press release they thanked the Vatican judicial authorities for their thorough work, which had enabled a “fair and just trial”.

The editor-in-chief of the Vatican media platform “Vatican News”, Andrea Tornielli, commented on the trial and the verdict with the words: “The Vatican relied on the transparent and necessary path of a regular criminal trial. (…) In view of irregularities that the judicial authorities (not by the judiciary of other countries, but by authorities within the Holy See), the Pope has allowed the judiciary to follow its normal, institutional path.”

With its verdicts, the Vatican court fell short of the punishments demanded by the prosecution. The defense lawyers of the defendants, who were now sentenced to prison in the first instance, had called for acquittals. They had repeatedly questioned the legality of the entire procedure.

Even in the Vatican it was said right up to the end that they were expecting acquittals or, at best, very mild punishments. The Roman newspaper “Il Messaggero” on Sunday compared the mood in the Vatican Curia after the verdict was announced on Saturday evening to a “state of shock”, but did not cite a voice to substantiate this.

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